One of China’s most prominent tech investors, Hillhouse Capital Group, is in talks to acquire Yum China, the country’s biggest fast-food operator, according to three people briefed on the matter.
Yum China, whose shares are listed on the New York Stock Exchange with a market capitalization of nearly $13 billion, operates more than 8,000 KFC and Pizza Hut restaurants across mainland China. The company was spun off from U.S.-based Yum Brands in 2016. A takeover led by Hillhouse, known for its early bets on Tencent and Didi Chuxing, could accelerate Yum China’s efforts to outfit its brick-and-mortar stores with high-tech initiatives that appeal to Chinese millennials.
