(Yicai Global) July 7 -- Nasdaq-listed Sina Corp, one of China’s leading online media firms, saw its shares leap 10.55 percent yesterday on the news that its largest shareholder, owned by the company’s chief executive officer, might take it private.

Sina [NASDAQ:SINA] closed at USD40.54. Stock in its Twitter-like blogging site Weibo [NASDAQ:WB] also advanced strongly, surging 17.97 percent to close at USD39.78.

British Virgin Islands-incorporated New Wave MMXV, which is controlled by Chao Guowei, the chairman and chief executive officer of Sina, has made a preliminary non-binding cash offer to buy out all outstanding shares, Beijing-based Sina said yesterday.

New Wave, which holds a 12.2 percent stake in Sina with 58 percent voting rights, will pay USD41 per share for the remaining equity, an 11.8 percent premium over the closing price of USD36.67 on July 3, it said.

Sina’s net profit rose two and a half times in the first quarter to USD82.4 million from a year earlier, despite revenue dropping 8 percent to USD435.1 million.

A special committee consisting of independent directors, Zhang Songyi, Zhang Yichen and Wang Yan has been formed to evaluate and consider the proposed transaction. Sina warned investors that there is no guarantee that the transaction will be approved or fulfilled.

Investment firms Schroder Investment Management North America and BlackRock are the second and third largest shareholders with 5.4 percent and 5.3 percent equity respectively as of March 31, according the firm’s 2019 annual report.

Editor: Kim Taylor