INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Alibaba will form two new units - international digital commerce and China digital commerce.Shanghai: Alibaba Group Holding Ltd said it will
reorganise its international and domestic e-commerce businesses and replace its CFO - changes that come as the tech giant grapples with an
onslaught of competition, a slowing economy and a regulatory crackdown.It will form two new units - international digital commerce and China
digital commerce which it said was part of efforts to become more agile and accelerate growth.The international digital commerce unit will
include AliExpress which sells to retail buyers particularly in Europe and South America, its Southeast Asian e-commerce business Lazada and
Alibaba.com which is more focused on selling to overseas business customers.It will be headed by Jiang Fan, who had been in charge of its
main Chinese retail marketplaces, and the change is seen in line with Alibaba's aim to make 'globalisation' a key focus area in addition
to cloud computing and domestic consumer spending.Globalisation "helps Alibaba to get new traffic volume externally (and) seek new growth
potential while China has been increasing supervision," said Hong Kong-based Guotai Junan analyst Danny Law.The China digital commerce unit
will include Alibaba's two main marketplaces, Tmall for established brands and Taobao which welcomes all kinds of merchants
It will be led by Trudy Dai, who has previously overseen a number of Alibaba platforms.The new structure for domestic e-commerce puts Dai in
charge of all China retail marketplaces, including Taocaicai - its community e-commerce service, Taobao Deals as well as Lingshoutong, a
retail management platform for mom and pop stores, said 86research.com analyst Xiaoyan Wang."This could possibly unlock more synergies via
cross-selling and integration of supply chain," she said.Alibaba also announced that deputy chief financial officer Toby Xu will succeed
Maggie Wu as CFO from April, describing his appointment as part of the company's leadership succession plan
Xu joined Alibaba from PWC three years ago.The e-commerce giant's Hong Kong-listed shares slid 6% in early morning trade, tracking Friday
declines made in the United States.United States -listed shares of Chinese firms have tumbled on concerns about stricter regulatory scrutiny
at home in the wake of plans by Didi Global Inc to delist from the New York Stock Exchange.Hit by weaker growth for the economy and fierce
competition from a plethora of rivals, Alibaba last month slashed its forecast for annual revenue growth to its slowest pace since its 2014
It also saw sales at its banner event, online shopping festival Singles Day, grow at their slowest rate ever.Chinese regulators have also
cracked down on the tech and other sectors, particularly on anti-trust issues that have seen Alibaba abandon a policy of requiring merchants
to exclusively set up shop on its platforms
The company was fined a record 18 billion yuan ($2.8 billion) in April for abusing its dominant market position.(This story has not been
edited by TheIndianSubcontinent staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
