As it seeks to widen its reach across China and Asia Pacific, Endeavor subsidiary Endeavor China has appointed media and entertainment executive Sum Huang as CEO. Huang was most recently co-founder and partner of XG Entertainment, a leading premium content provider in Asia, and previously spent five years with Hony Capital.
Under Huang’s leadership, XG raised capital from Alibaba CICC and YF Capital, and built a business developing and producing premium shows for streaming platforms, as well as underwriting and producing live concerts for top music artists. XG also established a branded content team that formed a TikTok-based, multi-channel media business.
At Hony, Huang initiated milestone deals for ByteDance and SMG Pictures, and led Hony’s investment in the TMT sector across China and Hollywood. Before Hony, Huang worked at AEA Investors, a New York-based private equity firm, and built Jefferies & Co’s China investment banking business as a local founding member.
“Sum’s entrepreneurial background and deep understanding of media will help us enhance the strong offering we’ve built across entertainment, sports and fashion in China and APAC more broadly,” said Mark Shapiro, President, Endeavor. “In this next phase of our growth, Sum will ensure we continue delivering exceptional local-market expertise for our clients and partners while expanding our footprint across the region.”
Huang is a jury member of the BAFTA China Breakthrough Awards and serves as a guest lecturer at a number of leading institutions, including the London School of Economics and Shanghai Jiao Tong University.
Endeavor China was formed in 2016 through an investment group that includes Sequoia Capital China, Tencent and affiliates of FountainVest Partners. The firm’s presence in China has spanned several decades and includes representing leading athletes, actors and fashion icons; managing professional golf and tennis events including the WGC HSBC Champions and Shenzhen Open; operating mass participation events including the Beijing Triathlon; consulting on fashion events like Shenzhen Fashion Week; negotiating media rights on behalf of sports entities such as the Chinese Super League; providing marketing and experiential services to blue-chip brands; operating a joint venture with CCTV to develop and promote sporting events; and providing strategic counsel to tourism, sports, corporate and event authorities.