Tencent becomes first Asian company to be valued over $500 billion

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‘Pony’ Ma Huateng, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Tencent Holdings Ltd.

Tencent shares hit a record high Monday, bringing its valuation to over $500 billion.

The technology firm is the first from China to reach the landmark valuation as it closes in on the likes of Facebook and Amazon.

The Hong Kong-listed internet giant, known for its WeChat messaging app and online games, saw shares rally to 420 Hong Kong dollars ($53.76) on Monday. Its market capitalization, or total value of all the shares in circulation, stood at 3.99 trillion Hong Kong dollars ($510.7 billion) at the market close.

Tencent’s market cap is above Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, which stands at $474.15 billion, and Baidu at $82.97 billion.

It is closing in on U.S. technology firms including Facebook, which is worth $520.14 billion, and Amazon, which is valued at $544.46 billion.

Tencent went public in Hong Kong in 2004 at 3.70 Hong Kong dollars per share. Since then, it has rallied 11,251 percent. Tencent’s stock this year alone is up 121.4 percent.

The share price has been driven by Tencent’s continued revenue growth, massive user base and investments into new areas. Last week, the Chinese company reported a 67 percent year-on-year rise in net profit for the third quarter, beating market expectations.

Tencent is a sprawling business. One of its key products is China’s most popular messaging service, WeChat, which is now approaching 1 billion users.