Alibaba to Invest $1 Billion in E-Commerce Startup Lazada

Alibaba to Invest $1 Billion in E-Commerce Startup Lazada

Deal is Alibaba’s largest overseas acquisition to date
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

Updated April 12, 2016 7:15 a.m. ET

In its biggest overseas acquisition to date, Chinese Internet giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. said Tuesday it will pay about $1 billion to buy a controlling stake in Singapore e-commerce startup Lazada Group, betting on growth in populous Southeast Asia.

The acquisition of Lazada -- which operates e-commerce platforms throughout Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam and sells everything from rice cookers to smartphones -- comes as the Chinese Internet giant has been using its $3.7 billion free cash flow to expand into e-commerce, logistics, media as well as entertainment both at home and abroad.

The deal comes just four months after Alibaba in December agreed to pay 2.06 billion Hong Kong dollars (US$266 million) to buy Hong Kong-based newspaper South China Morning Post.

“Globalization is a critical strategy for the growth of Alibaba Group today and well into the future,” said Alibaba President Michael Evans.

Separately, an Alibaba spokesman said the company will be able to tap into “Lazada’s logistics backbone.”