Tencent was the first Chinese internet business to reach a $500 billion market capitalization.
Tencent crossed the $500 billion valuation threshold in November 2017 as its Hong Kong-listed shares climbed. It became one of the earliest Chinese technology companies to join the world’s largest public-company valuations.
Tencent’s businesses include the WeChat messaging and payments ecosystem, online games, digital content, advertising, and cloud services. WeChat is especially important in China because it combines messaging with payments, shopping, booking, and other services.
Tencent’s market value has moved substantially over time because of changes in technology shares, Chinese regulation, advertising demand, and gaming performance. The company is often compared with Alibaba, but their core strengths differ: Tencent is strongly associated with social platforms and games, while Alibaba is associated with e-commerce and cloud computing.