MCH Group acquires HK International Art Fair

News this week: MCH Swiss Exhibition (Basel) Ltd., a MCH Group subsidiary, will acquire a 60% stake in Asian Art Fairs Limited, the organiser of the Hong Kong International Art Fair (ART HK). According to the company’s announcement, the transaction will be completed on 1^st July 2011. The MCH Group will have the option to acquire the remaining 40% stake in Asian Art Fairs Limited in 2014. No further financial details were disclosed.

ART HK, an annual event first launched in 2008, has emerged as a leading art fair in Asia, attracting international galleries, collectors, curators and museum directors. ART HK 2011 will be held from 26^th to 29^th May at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, featuring 260 galleries from 38 countries. The 2012 edition of ART HK will take place from 2^nd to 5^th February to coincide with the dates of MCH’s Art Basel and Art Basel Miami Beach.

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Warburg Pincus considers IndiaMart investment

News this week: Indian B2B e-commerce platform IndiaMart.com is reportedly engaged in advanced-stage talks with global private equity fund Warburg Pincus. IndiaMart will reportedly receive an investment of US$33.4 million in exchange for a 10%-20% stake in the company. IndiaMart.com has previously received US$10 million from Intel Capital in 2008, and approximately US$3.5 million from Bennett, Coleman & Co Ltd in 2007 – at undisclosed valuations.

Established in 1996, IndiaMart.com claims to have over two million registered users and 2010 revenues of roughly US$25 million. The company’s revenues are generated through user subscriptions for various types of online directory listing services.

This post is excerpted from BSG's weekly e-newsletter which is part of our subscription research service, BSG Tracker. Visit our website to find out more about this service. You can also follow us on Twitter for all the latest updates.

Alipay ownership transferred from Alibaba Group

News this week: Yahoo announced last week in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that the Alibaba Group has transferred the assets of its subsidiary Alipay, into a separate company owned by Alibaba Group chairman, Jack Ma.

The Alibaba Group’s management stated that the move was required in order to comply with Chinese licensing laws governing foreign ownership of payment service companies. Alibaba’s management also stated that the change in ownership had been discussed several company board meetings over the past three years. Financial details of the transfer were not disclosed. The transfer reportedly occurred in August 2010.

Speaking at an Alibaba.com shareholders’ meeting in Hong Kong, Ma claimed that all major shareholders were informed about the transfer and that the transfer was “100% legal and 100% transparent.” Meanwhile, according to an Alibaba company spokesman, Jerry Yang, Yahoo co-founder and current board member of Alibaba Group, was present at these Alibaba Group board meetings.

This post is excerpted from BSG's weekly e-newsletter which is part of our subscription research service, BSG Tracker. Visit our website to find out more about this service. You can also follow us on Twitter for all the latest updates.