(Bloomberg) -- Sea Ltd (NYSE:SE), the Singapore-based internet company backed by Tencent Holdings (OTC:TCEHY) Ltd., said revenue doubled in the second quarter, driven by strong growth at e-commerce platform Shopee and gaming arm Garena.
Total revenue rose to $882 million in the three months ended June from $436.2 million a year earlier, the company said in a statement on Tuesday. Net loss widened to $393 million from $280 million.
The robust topline numbers underscore how Sea became the world’s best-performing large-cap stock over the 18 months to August, stoking debate over whether the gaming, e-commerce and payments company is the next internet colossus or Exhibit A in a tech bubble destined to burst. Swelling optimism the loss-making company may one day become both the Tencent and Alibaba (NYSE:BABA) of Southeast Asia boosted its New York shares by more than 880% during that period.
Key Insights
- Revenue at Garena rose to $384 million from $229.5 million, fueled by the popularity of Free Fire, the first self-developed hit game at the company.
- Revenue at Shopee and other services climbed to $364.7 million from $165.7 million.
- SeaMoney, the company’s digital financial unit, gained traction, with mobile wallet total payment volume topping $1.6 billion during the quarter. There were 15 million paying mobile wallet service users.
- Sea’s total sales and marketing expenses in the second quarter increased 95% to $386.3 million.
- Sea’s U.S. depositary receipts, which have gained 234% this year, closed at $134.28 in New York on Monday, up 6.2% from Friday.
- Read more: World’s Hottest Stock Is a Money-Losing Tech Giant Soaring 880%