‘Alibaba
files for what may be biggest tech IPO’
Alibaba gave investors
a closer look at the scale and growth of the Chinese e-commerce juggernaut in
an initial public offering (IPO) prospectus filed on Tuesday, the first step in
what could be the largest technology debut in history.
Alibaba
Group Holding Ltd, which powers 80 percent of all online commerce in the
world's second-largest economy, is expected to raise more than $15
billion, and could top the $16 billion pulled in by Facebook Inc when it listed in 2012.
The bulk of
the proceeds will go to Yahoo Inc -
which bought a 40 percent stake in Alibaba in 2005 for $1 billion and which
must sell more than a third of its current 22.6 percent stake through the IPO.
Alibaba also plans to sell new shares, people familiar with the plans have
said, to bulk up a cash war chest depleted by a rash of recent acquisitions.
While the
Alibaba brand is less well known in the United States than Internet companies
such as Amazon.com and Facebook,
the Chinese company's listing has stirred the most excitement in Silicon Valley
and Wall Street since Facebook's record IPO. Alibaba will become the largest
Chinese corporation to list in the U.S. - on either the New York Stock Exchange
or the Nasdaq.
Click here
for the full article from Reuters.
‘Investors
Say Alibaba IPO Filing Leaves Many Questions Unanswered’
As Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. prepares for what might be one
of the biggest initial public offerings in history, it faces the challenge of
convincing investors it will be a good buy.
Some may need more prodding.
A number of investors and analysts said Wednesday that the
more than 2,000 pages the Chinese e-commerce giant filed Tuesday leave many
important questions unanswered. They include the individual performance of the
major e-commerce platforms that make up the bulk of its revenue, details of the
business of electronic-payment affiliate Alipay, its strategy for a string of
pricey recent acquisitions, and plans for improving the way it delivers
packages to Chinese customers.
Many investors are eagerly anticipating the offering because
Alibaba holds an 80% share in the promising Chinese e-commerce market. The
financial results disclosed Tuesday showed a fast-growing company with fat
profit margins.
Click here
for the full article in the Wall Street Journal.
‘The Risks of Investing in Alibaba’s I.P.O.’
The planned initial public
offering of Alibaba, the Chinese
e-commerce behemoth, has Wall Street buzzing. But investing in the tech
behemoth carries a number of risks.
The prospectus for
the I.P.O., which was filed on Tuesday, contains 38 pages outlining many of the
risks that the company is disclosing to would-be investors. Such disclosures
are fairly standard, intended to insulate companies from shareholder lawsuits
if the investments go sour. But others are particular to Alibaba and reflect a
different set of corporate governance standards than those at many American
firms.
Among the many risks listed, prospective investors are warned
about the Chinese government, Alibaba’s corporate structure and even the threat
of a natural disaster.
A few of the notable risk factors outlined include:
* Because it is a foreign company, Alibaba plans to rely on
exemptions from certain corporate governance requirements under the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq. For example, the
company said it was not required to have a majority of its board be
independent, to have a compensation committee made up of independent directors
or to adopt and disclose a code of ethics for directors and officers.
* Alibaba also said that it did not have to file reports and
financial statements with the Securities
and Exchange Commission “as
frequently or as promptly” as American companies. “As a result, our shareholders
may be afforded less protection than they would under the Exchange Act rules
applicable to domestic U.S. companies,” the prospectus said.
Click here for the full article in the New York
Times.