Tencent nears Facebook value amid China Internet boom

Tencent Holdings’ market value surpassed $100 billion within a decade of going public as Asia’s biggest Internet company capitalizes on China’s explosion in online gaming and messaging.

Tencent rose 2.5 percent to HK$421.20 in Hong Kong, lifting its market value to HK$782.8 billion ($101 billion).

The company run by billionaire Pony Ma joins six other Hong Kong-listed companies in the $100 billion club.

China’s online population surged almost sevenfold since Tencent’s 2004 initial public offering, with revenue at the Shenzhen-based company more than doubling in the past two years. China’s online gaming sales are expected to reach 1.3 trillion yuan ($212.4 billion) by 2016, from 66.2 billion yuan last year, according to Shanghai-based Internet consulting firm IResearch. Bloomberg