China's Alibaba Acquires 9.99% Stake in Swiss Dufry

Alibaba Invests to Secure Offline Chains
Also Considering Joint Ventures in China

[Asia Economy Beijing=Special Correspondent Jo Young-shin] Alibaba, China's largest e-commerce company, is acquiring a stake in Swiss duty-free group Dufry to expand into offline markets.

Chinese economic media Caixin reported on the 6th that Alibaba is purchasing a 9.99% stake in Switzerland's Dufry.

Exterior view of Alibaba Beijing headquarters located in Wangjing, Beijing, China

Caixin stated that Alibaba agreed to invest 250 million Swiss francs following Dufry's proposal.

Dufry is currently pursuing fundraising of up to 700 million Swiss francs.

Caixin also added that private equity firm Advent International Corp plans to invest 455 million Swiss francs. Following news that Alibaba and others would participate in the capital increase, Dufry's stock price surged by 16% at the close on the 5th local time.

Caixin reported that Dufry's market capitalization is 1.6 billion Swiss francs, the lowest in 10 years.

Dufry has reportedly faced difficulties this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, announcing plans in June to reduce its workforce by 20 to 35%.

Caixin reported that Dufry is exploring ways to integrate Alibaba's digital capabilities and network, as well as establishing a joint venture in China.

Alibaba has been striving to secure offline chains that can be combined with IT technology to expand its business reach.

In fact, last year Alibaba established an online joint venture called 'Feng Mao' with Swiss luxury group Richemont. Richemont also holds shares in Dufry.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.