What is "tencent"

Tencent Holdings Limited is a Chinese investment holding company whose subsidiaries provide media, entertainment, internet and mobile phone value-added services and operate online advertising services in China. Its headquarters are in Nanshan District, Shenzhen.

Tencent is one of the largest Internet companies in the world, many services of whose include social network, web portals, e-commerce, and multiplayer online games. Its offerings include the well-known (in China) instant messenger Tencent QQ and one of the largest web portals in China, QQ.com. Mobile chat service WeChat has helped bolster Tencent's continued expansion into smartphone services. Tencent holds 15% stake of JD.com, one of the largest B2C online retailers in China.

In April 13, 2015, the market value of Tencent exceeded US$200 billion for the first time, hitting US$206 billion. On September 8, 2015, Tencent became the largest Internet company in Asia by value after Alibaba Group Holding Limited suffered a major drop ($141 billion over 10 months) in its share value.