Tencent to buy stake in Leju

E-House (China) Holdings announced over the weekend that leading Chinese Internet company Tencent Holdings will spend $180 million for a 15 percent stake in Leju Holdings, a wholly owned subsidiary of E-house, the company said over the weekend.

The transaction will be completed by the end of the month, the New York Stock Exchange-listed company said, explaining that Tencent is aiming to capitalize on Leju's success in real estate e-commerce.

E-House proposed in early March to launch the IPO of its real estate e-commerce platform unit in the US.

On March 10, Leju has signed a cooperative agreement with Tencent to develop its mobile property e-commerce business.