Chinese internet giant Alibaba obtains $8bn loanMay 3, 2013 - 09:23 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. has obtained an US$8 billion loan from nine banks, The Wall Street Journal reported citing a person with knowledge of the matter. Alibaba closed the loan deal on April 30, the person said. The nine banks providing the loan are Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd., Credit Suisse Group AG, Citigroup Inc., Deutsche Bank AG, DBS Group Holdings Ltd., HSBC Holdings PLC, J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., Morgan Stanley and Mizuho Corporate Bank Ltd., the person said. The financing comprises three tranches: a $2.5 billion three-year term loan, a $4 billion five-year term loan and a $1.5 billion three-year revolving credit facility, the person said, according to the Journal. Alibaba's $8 billion loan, aimed at refinancing existing debts and raising additional funds, comes as bankers are awaiting the company's much-anticipated initial public offering of stock, which could value it at tens of billions of dollars or more. The nine banks involved in the loan arrangement are trying to deepen their relationship with Alibaba in hopes that they will get to play significant roles in the IPO, other people familiar with the situation said. Alibaba, which operates online shopping sites Taobao and Tmall, is by far the biggest competitor in China's growing e-commerce market. Earlier this week, it announced a $586 million deal to take an 18% stake in Sina Corp.'s Twitter-like Weibo microblog business, as the company tries to adapt its business to capture growth in China's mobile Internet market. Top stories Yerevan will host the 2024 edition of the World Congress On Information Technology (WCIT). Rustam Badasyan said due to the lack of such regulation, the state budget is deprived of VAT revenues. Krisp’s smart noise suppression tech silences ambient sounds and isolates your voice for calls. Gurgen Khachatryan claimed that the "illegalities have been taking place in 2020." Partner news Most popular in the section | Scholz hopes Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty will be signed this year German Chancellor Olaf Scholz hopes that a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan will be signed this year. Armenia, Russia discuss life extension of Metsamor nuclear plant Issues regarding the extension of life of the 2nd power unit of the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant were discussed in Yerevan. Armenians stage more campaigns against territorial concessions to Azerbaijan Protesters blocked more roads across Armenia on Friday, April 26 in continuing attempts to scuttle territorial concessions to Azerbaijan. Czech-Armenian military cooperation discussed in Yerevan A delegation led by the Director General for the Industrial Cooperation Division of the Ministry of Defence of the Czech Republic visited Armenia. |