Alibaba launches Yule Bao, 7% yield expected

(ECNS) -- Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba announced on Wednesday it would launch a new financing platform – Yule Bao, which is expected to yield an annual return of 7 percent, according to stcn.com.

Alibaba said Yule Bao is not a crowd-funding model.

Based on the mobile end of Taobao, Yule Bao raises funds from selling insurance products to consumers, and the funds will be invested in culture industries sponsored by Alibaba.

Kuo Hua Life Insurance is the product provider for Yule Bao.

Consumers can invest 100 ($16.12) to 1,000 yuan ($161.20) on Yule Bao and receive the principal and return in a year.

The initial stage is expected to raise 73 million yuan ($11.78 million), which will be invested in four movies, including the Tiny Times series and Wolf Totem, and a game.