Alibaba to offer shares of HiChina group
26 Sep 2011
Chinese online trade platform Alibaba.com Ltd said it would seek to offer shares of its website service unit in the US even as new Chinese listings had faced headwinds there.
The move comes as the latest by Alibaba.com parent Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, China's dominant e-commerce company, as it faced a fallout from a fraud scandal amid rising competition and questions regarding big stakes in the company held by foreign partners Yahoo Inc and Softbank Corp.
According to Alibaba.com, it submitted documents to the Hong Kong stock exchange to offer shares of HiChina Group Ltd, which is engaged in hosting and building websites, software development, and offering e-commerce consultation for Chinese businesses.
The company described the transaction as a "proposed spin-off through an initial public offering of shares," but it did not furnish details in the statement on how it would be structured.
The company said qualifying shareholders would receive "an assured entitlement" but offered no specifics. It further said size and price had not been been finalised as yet.
According to analysts, the company could be valued at around $500 million at the time of its listing.