Tencent

Tencent was founded on November 7, 1998 in Shenzhen, China, by five co-founders: Ma Huateng (Pony Ma), Zhang Zhidong (Tony Zhang), Xu Chenye, Chen Yidan (Charles Chen), and Zeng Liqing. All five were alumni of Shenzhen University. The company was initially incorporated in the Cayman Islands as Tencent Inc. The name "Tencent" derives from its Chinese name Tengxun (腾讯), which incorporates part of Pony Ma's Chinese name and literally means "galloping fast information."

In February 1999, Tencent launched OICQ, a free instant messaging service adapted from the Israeli ICQ model for Chinese users. After a trademark dispute with AOL, the product was renamed QQ. The company struggled financially in its early years; Ma reportedly tried to sell the company for 600,000 yuan (approximately $72,500) in 1999 but found no buyers. A critical lifeline arrived in 2000 with a $2.2 million investment from IDG Capital and PCCW. Tencent became profitable in 2001 after introducing value-added services like Q-Coins and QQ Show avatar systems. The company went public on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (SEHK: 700) in June 2004, raising approximately $200 million.

Today, Tencent is the world's largest video game vendor by revenue, owning or holding stakes in Riot Games (League of Legends), Epic Games (Fortnite), Supercell (Clash of Clans), and numerous other studios. Its flagship "super app" WeChat (Weixin) has over 1 billion monthly active users, combining messaging, social media, payment services, and mini-programs. The company also operates QQ.com (news portal), Tencent Pictures (film production), music streaming services, Tencent Cloud, and Weixin Pay (WeChat Pay). In April 2023, Weixin Pay signed a three-year deal with the Singapore Tourism Board to facilitate Chinese tourist transactions. Tencent's 2024 revenue reached $104.6 billion, with 13.9% growth over 2023, and the company employs 115,849 people. [edit]