Shenzhen-based Tencent Holdings Ltd, China's largest instant messaging service provider, and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the largest of the big four lenders in China, entered a strategic alliance by launching a co-branded virtual bank card in the domestic market yesterday.

　　As a result of this partnership, virtual bank card holders will be able to pay for value-added Internet services provided by Tencent directly from their ICBC accounts online.

　　The two partners will also cooperate in promoting other electronic banking services and jointly develop an Internet security verification system.

　　"Through the cooperation with Tencent, we are getting closer to our target of transforming a bank's Website into a Website's bank," according to Zhang Qu, vice president of ICBC.

　　Industry insiders said the linkage will further increase the utility of ICBC's online payment system and expand its customer base.

　　Tencent has 12.8 million registered users as of March, paying for its mobile services, including picture downloading, news and entertainment.

　　ICBC now has 9.56 million customers using its online banking service. The value of online business hit 22.3 billion yuan last year (US$2.67 billion), making up 18.5 percent of the bank's business transactions.

　　Ma Huateng, CEO of Nasdaq-listed Tencent, said online banking payment will become the most important payment method for the company in the future.

　　Those paying for the Internet value-added services, such as online gaming, are more inclined to use online payment, according to Zou Lei, an analyst with Shanghai-based iResearch Co Ltd, an Internet consulting company.