Tencent
The Shenzhen conglomerate behind WeChat and QQ, the world's largest games publisher by revenue, and a sprawling portfolio of minority stakes — from Riot Games to a 5% holding in Afterpay.
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- Location
- Shenzhen, China
- Country
- China
- Founded
- 1998
- Co-founder and CEO
- Ma Huateng (Pony Ma)
- Headquarters
- Shenzhen, China
- Listed
- Hong Kong Stock Exchange, June 2004
- Flagship products
- WeChat/Weixin, QQ
- 2024 revenue
- RMB660.3 billion (up 8%)
- Afterpay stake
- 5% (May 2020)
Overview
Tencent is a Chinese multinational technology conglomerate headquartered in Shenzhen, founded in 1998 by Ma Huateng — known as “Pony” Ma — and the company behind WeChat, QQ, and some of the world’s most-played video games. It grew from an instant-messaging startup into a conglomerate spanning social platforms, games, advertising, payments and cloud, with an investment portfolio reaching from Riot Games to a 5% stake in Afterpay. (Britannica; The Motley Fool)
Ma earned a computer science degree at Shenzhen University in 1993 and worked in research and development for China Motion Telecom Development Ltd. before founding Tencent in 1998 with several friends (Britannica). A year later the company launched the internet-based QQ service, then called OICQ, which soon became one of China’s most popular instant-messaging platforms, and in June 2004 it raised nearly $200 million in a Hong Kong listing after gaining the backing of two overseas venture-capital firms (Britannica).
From QQ to WeChat
Tencent launched Weixin/WeChat in 2011, and it evolved from a mobile messaging app into a super app spanning messaging, payments through Weixin Pay/WeChat Pay, and other financial services (The Motley Fool). Britannica put WeChat above 1 billion users as of December 2023; the Fool reports more than 1.4 billion combined monthly active users for Weixin and WeChat in 2026 (Britannica; The Motley Fool).
Games and the investor’s playbook
Tencent launched Tencent Games in 2003 (The Motley Fool). Its most complete conquest was Riot Games, maker of League of Legends: Tencent bought a majority stake in February 2011 and then purchased the remaining equity in 2015, having owned around 93% beforehand (TechCrunch). Elsewhere it prefers influence to control. It made a strategic investment in Epic Games, maker of Fortnite, in 2012 and holds an estimated 40% stake; it is the largest shareholder of Singapore-based Sea Limited with less than 20% of its shares and less than 10% of its voting power, after trimming about 2.5% of its holding for around $3 billion in 2022 (The Motley Fool).
The same pattern runs through fintech and social media. Tencent and partners founded WeBank, China’s first digital bank, in 2014, with Tencent holding a 30% stake and WeBank serving more than 440 million individual clients as of October 2026 (The Motley Fool). It bought a 12% stake in Snap in 2017 and is now Snap’s largest shareholder at over 16%, and its $180 million 2018 investment in Brazil’s Nu Holdings grew to nearly 150 million shares worth about $2 billion by mid-2025, around 4% of the company (The Motley Fool).
In May 2020 Tencent became a “substantial shareholder” of Afterpay with a 5% stake valued at approximately A$390 million; chief strategy officer James Mitchell said Tencent operates China’s leading digital payment service, and outside China it has actively invested in pioneering fintech companies (PYMNTS). It was a minority bet on a payments model, not a takeover. Tencent’s own largest shareholder is South African media company Naspers, which owns roughly a quarter of Tencent through its affiliate Prosus (The Motley Fool).
The 2021 regulatory reset
Tencent’s scale made it a target when Beijing moved against its internet giants. In July 2021 anti-monopoly regulators fined companies in 22 cases at 500,000 yuan (about $75,000) each for acquisitions that might improperly increase market power; the violators included five companies owned by Tencent, alongside six owned by Alibaba (Associated Press). Weeks later, China banned minors from playing online games for more than three hours a week — 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Fridays, weekends and public holidays from September 1 — down from a 2019 rule allowing an hour and a half a day (Associated Press). The rule hit Tencent, whose Honor of Kings game was hugely popular, and Tencent had already announced August curbs: an hour a day for minors, two hours on holidays, and no in-game purchases for children under 12 (Associated Press). By the announcement, Tencent’s market capitalisation of $573 billion was down more than $300 billion from its February peak (Associated Press).
Scale today: WeChat as commerce and AI infrastructure
Full-year revenue was RMB660.3 billion, up 8%: gaming RMB197.7 billion (about 30%), advertising RMB121.4 billion (up 20%), and fintech and enterprise services RMB212 billion (up 4%) (Jiemian Global). WeChat Shop’s gross merchandise value nearly doubled in 2024 and order volume surged 125% (Jiemian Global). Tencent is also spending heavily on artificial intelligence, with capital expenditure up 221% year on year to RMB76.7 billion in 2024, largely on graphics processors, while chairman and CEO Pony Ma described a dual strategy embracing both Tencent’s in-house Hunyuan model and the open-source DeepSeek model as complementary (Jiemian Global). Its AI chatbot Yuanbao saw daily active users surge 20-fold from February to March, per the company’s earnings-call account (Jiemian Global).
What this profile does not claim
This profile does not claim Tencent still holds its Afterpay stake after Block’s acquisition of Afterpay, or a single aggregate 2021 antitrust fine figure beyond the July per-case fines documented above. It gives no precise figure for Tencent’s 2025 Ubisoft subsidiary stake, because its cited source states two different percentages. Stake percentages are dated snapshots that move over time, and figures beyond fiscal 2024 (other than the dated 2026 WeChat figure) were not verified from fully-read independent sources. It does not adjudicate the merits of China’s gaming or antitrust rules — only what the regulators did and what Tencent reported.
Timeline
- 1998
- Ma Huateng co-founds Tencent with friends in Shenzhen; the QQ instant-messaging service (then OICQ) follows a year later.
- 2004
- Tencent lists on the Hong Kong stock exchange in June, raising nearly $200 million.
- 2011
- WeChat (Weixin) launches; Tencent also buys a majority stake in Riot Games, maker of League of Legends.
- 2015
- Tencent purchases the remaining equity of Riot Games, having owned around 93% beforehand.
- 2020
- Tencent becomes a substantial shareholder of Afterpay with a 5% stake valued at approximately A$390 million.
- 2021
- Chinese anti-monopoly regulators fine Tencent-owned companies in July; in August, minors' online gaming is capped at three hours a week.
- 2024
- Full-year revenue reaches RMB660.3 billion, up 8%, with gaming contributing RMB197.7 billion, about 30% of the total.
What we could not verify
These claims came up in research and could not be confirmed. They are recorded here rather than published as fact or quietly dropped. If you hold a source that settles one, please tell us.
- The Motley Fool gives two different figures (26.3% and 25%) for Tencent's 2025 stake in Ubisoft's new gaming subsidiary; this profile states only that Tencent increased its Ubisoft position in 2025 and gives no precise figure.
- Whether Tencent still holds its Afterpay stake after Block's January 2022 acquisition of Afterpay was not verified from a fully-read source and is not claimed.
- No single aggregate 2021 antitrust fine figure for Tencent is stated here. The fully-read Associated Press source covers only the July 2021 per-case fines of 500,000 yuan each.
- Stake percentages (Sea, Snap, Nu, Epic, Naspers/Prosus) are as reported at the dates given in the sources and will drift over time.
- Revenue and user figures beyond fiscal 2024, other than the dated 2026 WeChat user figure, were not verified from fully-read independent sources and are not stated.
Sources
7 sources (3 tier 1, 4 tier 2), each opened and read against the claim it supports. Every source is independent of the subject; no first-party material is cited. See the source policy.
Built from sources fetched and read in full: Britannica (tier1) for the founding, QQ, IPO and WeChat history; Associated Press wire reporting (tier1) for the 2021 antitrust fines and gaming cap; TechCrunch, PYMNTS, Jiemian Global and The Motley Fool (tier2) for acquisitions, the Afterpay stake, 2024 results and the investment portfolio. Wikipedia was used only as a lead index and is not cited. No first-party sources were used. Note: The Motley Fool discloses that it holds positions in and recommends Tencent and Sea Limited.
- Ma Huateng Tier 1Supports: Founding of Tencent in 1998 by Ma Huateng, Shenzhen base, QQ launch as OICQ a year later, Hong Kong IPO June 2004 raising nearly $200 million, WeChat launch 2011 and >1 billion users as of December 2023, late-2015 QQ/WeChat/Qzone user snapshot, expansion into online lifestyle services Open original source
- Supports: July 2021 anti-monopoly fines — 22 cases at 500,000 yuan each, five Tencent-owned companies among violators, Alibaba's April 2021 18.3 billion yuan fine for context Open original source
- Supports: August 2021 minors' gaming cap (three hours a week, 8–9 p.m. Fridays/weekends/holidays from September 1), prior 2019 rule, Tencent's own August curbs, Tencent market cap $573 billion down more than $300 billion from its February peak Open original source
- Supports: Majority stake in Riot Games bought February 2011, remaining equity purchased in 2015, ~93% owned beforehand, majority stake believed worth more than $350 million, other gaming investments at the time Open original source
- Supports: 5% Afterpay stake valued at approximately A$390 million, "substantial shareholder" status, Tencent's Hong Kong listing and value-added services description, Weixin Pay >1 billion commercial transactions daily, James Mitchell fintech quote Open original source
- Supports: FY2024 revenue RMB660.3 billion (+8%), gaming RMB197.7 billion (~30%), value-added services RMB319.2 billion, advertising RMB121.4 billion (+20%), fintech and enterprise services RMB212 billion (+4%), WeChat Shop GMV nearly doubling and order volume +125%, 2024 capex RMB76.7 billion (+221%), Yuanbao DAU surge and AI strategy Open original source
- What Does Tencent Own? Tier 2Supports: Conglomerate/holding-company structure, WeChat launched 2011 and >1.4 billion combined monthly active users in 2026, QQ launched 1999, Tencent Games launched 2003, Tencent Music formed 2016, Epic Games investment 2012 (~40%), Sea largest shareholder (<20% shares, <10% votes, 2022 trim), WeBank founded 2014 (30% stake, >440 million clients), Nu Holdings investment 2018 (~4%), Snap stake 2017 (largest shareholder, >16%), Naspers largest shareholder via Prosus (roughly a quarter), Riot majority 2011 and remainder 2015 Open original source
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