Tencent's New Strategy

After its stock price reached a record high in Hong Kong earlier this week, Chinese internet giant Tencent, now valued at more than $300 billion, made the list of the 10 most-valuable companies in the world. The company is best known for its popular social messaging platform WeChat, mobile payment solutions and fast-growing mobile gaming segment. During Tencent's 2016 annual results announcement, management reiterated "Connection" as its strategy for 2017--which means WeChat will remain at the core of Tencent's business development strategy, and with good justification. Within just six years, the social messaging platform has grown to become one of the largest communication platforms in the world, rivaling other popular apps such as WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger. The core value of WeChat is in the conversation data generated by the enormous user base, which Tencent monetizes through advertisements and additional offerings such as mobile games and payments.