Alibaba takes 10.35 pct bite in SingPost

E-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holdings has agreed to invest 312.5 million Singapore dollars ($250 million) in Singapore Post to take a 10.35 percent stake, the firms said in a joint statement on Wednesday.

Alibaba Investment Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Alibaba Group, has agreed to purchase 30 million existing shares and 190.1 million new ordinary shares in SingPost, SingPost said in a statement to the Singapore Exchange.

Both sides also signed a memorandum of understanding that will allow them to explore the possibility of a joint venture in the area of international e-commerce logistics.

The cooperation will tap into other e-commerce opportunities in Southeast Asia and beyond by providing greater access to SingPost' s international logistics capabilities, infrastructure and delivery networks and end-to-end solutions to Alibaba Group customers and merchants, they said.

SingPost said that Alibaba as a substantial shareholder will provide it with "considerable strategic advantages" and that the cooperation will enable SingPost to "leverage on e-commerce logistics as a strengthened revenue stream, even as its core business continues to be eroded by declining traditional domestic mail volumes."

SingPost is the national postal service provider in Singapore for over 150 years and a leading provider of e-commerce logistics solutions and communications in the region.

Alibaba Group is the largest online and mobile commerce company in the world in terms of gross merchandise volume in 2013.