For a whopping sum of a new HK$1 billion ($130 million), Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA), the China’s ecommerce giant has unveiled its first investment manager named Gobi Partners. The fund that is not for any profit gain is for the sole purpose of helping Hong Kong entrepreneurs and their initiative dubbed Hong Kong Young Entrepreneurs Foundation.
Alibaba is very enthusiastic in seeing entrepreneurs engage in startups that will grow. According to executive vice Chairman of Alibaba, Joe Tsai, many entrepreneurs want to take advantage of the resources offered by Alibaba’s ecosystem in e-commerce. Hence, Alibaba is keen on making it easy for them to do business anywhere. That said it is clear that the ecommerce giant’s passion is to foster any emerging entrepreneurial spirit through the fund.
Among those who will constitute the board is the founder and Chairman of Lan Kwai Fong Group, Allan Zeman. Others will include President of Asia Financial Group and Asia Insurance, Bernard Chan, Alibaba’s president and chief operating officer from 2001 to 2003, Savio Kwan. The executive director position shall be taken up by Cindy Chow from Alibaba.
The fund’s model will be stage agnostic, meaning The Gobi and any other investment manager will have the autonomy of capitalizing their investments in companies either at “startup, growth, and or expansion phases. Nevertheless, the investment amounts are yet to be revealed.
The Fund will not only be used to nurture the embryonic entrepreneurial spirit, but it will also come in handy in promoting internship opportunities for graduates and those in their final year of study at local tertiary education institutions. The 200 internship program’s opportunities are expected to start receiving applications early next year and shall create work for the students for six to 12 months. The students will have a chance of working at Alibaba or companies in the Alibaba ecosystem in mainland China.
Meanwhile, last year, Alibaba held the largest IPO in U.S. meaning it is very vibrant in business. It since calling on Hong Kong to engage themselves in brisk business beginning on a regional basis and later, on a global basis
Sources: venturebeat, demanjo
