Rumor: Alibaba to Establish New Small Loan Company in Guangzhou
Ebrun, 12/05/12
An industry source revealed recently that Hangzhou-based e-commerce conglomerate Alibaba Group hopes to establish a company in Guangzhou to oversee its small loan service. The company, which will offer services throughout Guangdong province, is expected to have registered capital of RMB 300 mln. According to one source working in the small-loan industry and another source working for a small-loan company, Alibaba Small Loan has not yet begun efforts to set up a company in Guangzhou, and is stalled at the "intent stage." The question of whether or not the company will receive authorization from the Guangdong provincial government will determine Alibaba Small Loan's next move, the sources said. Neither source waxed optimistic about the company's prospects: article 28 of the Guangdong provincial government's (trial) administrative regulations for small-loan companies lists cross-county business operations among the activities prohibited for small-loan companies.
A spokesperson for Alibaba Small Loan said on December 4 that he had not heard anything about preparations to begin trials in Guangzhou. The spokesperson confirmed that Alibaba Small Loan intends to work with the Guangdong provincial government, but said that the cooperation would focus chiefly on the areas of finance data and logistics.
Keywords: financing e-commerce Internet Alibaba Group
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