Friday, October 18, 2013

Alibaba’s revenue and profit grow in Q2

News this week: China’s largest e-commerce company, the Alibaba Group, recorded a revenue growth of 60% year-on-year, to US$1.73 billion in the second quarter of 2013. Net income in the quarter was US$707 million, more than double last year’s US$273 million.

Additionally, Alibaba and its largest shareholder, Yahoo! Inc., have amended their agreement and have agreed to reduce the number of shares Yahoo will sell when an eventual Alibaba IPO takes place. According to the new agreement, Yahoo will sell 208 million of its 523.6 million shares into the IPO or to Alibaba. The original agreement was for Yahoo to sell 261.5 million shares.


Separately, Alibaba has agreed to invest US$200 million in ShopRunner, a U.S.-based online retailer. ShopRunner, established in 2010, offers free two-day shipping on goods for an annual membership fee of US$79. The online retailer is currently led by Yahoo’s former CEO Scott Thompson, and competes with Amazon’s Prime membership program.

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.

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