Alibaba Acquires Controlling Stake in Sun Art
October 18 2020 - 8:05PM
Business Wire
Accelerating New Retail Strategy to Capture
Opportunities in China’s Retail Sector
Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE: BABA and HKEX: 9988,
“Alibaba” or “Alibaba Group”) today announced it will invest
approximately USD3.6 billion in respect of Sun Art Retail Group
Limited (HKEX: 6808, “Sun Art”), a leading hypermarket and
supermarket operator in China, that will raise its aggregate direct
and indirect stake to approximately 72%1. This transaction
demonstrates Alibaba’s continued commitment to Sun Art, and its New
Retail strategy by further integrating online and offline resources
in China’s retail sector.
As part of the transaction, Alibaba will acquire 70.94% of
equity interest in A-RT Retail Holdings Limited (“A-RT”) from
Auchan Retail International S.A. and its subsidiary (“Auchan
Retail”) valued at approximately HKD28.0 billion (USD3.6 billion).
A-RT holds approximately 51% of the equity interest in Sun Art.
Following the transaction, Alibaba will consolidate Sun Art in its
financial statements. Additionally, Peter Huang has been appointed
Chairman of Sun Art in addition to his current role as Chief
Executive Officer.
Daniel Zhang, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Alibaba
Group, said: “Alibaba’s strategic investment in Sun Art in 2017 was
an important step in our New Retail strategy. The alliance we
formed with Auchan Retail and Ruentex was instrumental in building
a robust infrastructure to create opportunities and value in
China’s retail sector. Led by Chief Executive Officer Peter Huang,
Sun Art has achieved impressive results in its digitalization, and
pursued promising synergies with businesses across the Alibaba
digital economy. As the COVID-19 pandemic is accelerating the
digitalization of consumer lifestyles and enterprise operations,
this commitment to Sun Art serves to strengthen our New Retail
vision and serve more consumers with a fully integrated
experience.”
In November 2017, Alibaba Group, Auchan Retail and Ruentex Group
announced a strategic alliance to digitalize and introduce New
Retail solutions at Sun Art stores, including omnichannel
integration and a more personalized customer experience. Over the
past three years, Sun Art has made significant progress in the
digital transformation under a fast-changing market environment by
leveraging resources and technology from the Alibaba ecosystem, to
capitalize on the growth opportunities in China’s hypermarket and
supermarket space.
Today, all Sun Art physical stores in China have been integrated
into Alibaba’s Taoxianda and Tmall Supermarket platforms, providing
one-hour and half-day on-demand delivery through deep collaboration
with other key businesses across the Alibaba ecosystem, including
Ele.me and Cainiao, offering consumers greater product selection
and access. As of June 30, 2020, Sun Art operates 481 hypermarkets
and 3 mid-size supermarkets in China, with a focus on strengthening
its position through small and offline community stores.
About Alibaba Group
Alibaba Group’s mission is to make it easy to do business
anywhere. The company aims to build the future infrastructure of
commerce. It envisions that its customers will meet, work and live
at Alibaba and that it will be a good company that lasts for 102
years.
1Including the stake held by Alibaba Group and its related
party.
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201018005074/en/
Ivy Ke Alibaba Group +852 5590 9949 Ivy.ke@alibaba-inc.com
Cathy Yan Alibaba Group +852 9012 5806
cathy.yan@alibaba-inc.com
Alibaba (NYSE:BABA)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2024 to May 2024
Alibaba (NYSE:BABA)
Historical Stock Chart
From May 2023 to May 2024