Alibaba Acquires Controlling Stake in Sun Art
19.10.2020 03:05:00 EEST | Business Wire | Press release
Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE: BABA and HKEX: 9988, “Alibaba” or “Alibaba Group”) today announced it will invest approximately USD3.6 billion in respect of Sun Art Retail Group Limited (HKEX: 6808, “Sun Art”), a leading hypermarket and supermarket operator in China, that will raise its aggregate direct and indirect stake to approximately 72%1. This transaction demonstrates Alibaba’s continued commitment to Sun Art, and its New Retail strategy by further integrating online and offline resources in China’s retail sector.
As part of the transaction, Alibaba will acquire 70.94% of equity interest in A-RT Retail Holdings Limited (“A-RT”) from Auchan Retail International S.A. and its subsidiary (“Auchan Retail”) valued at approximately HKD28.0 billion (USD3.6 billion). A-RT holds approximately 51% of the equity interest in Sun Art. Following the transaction, Alibaba will consolidate Sun Art in its financial statements. Additionally, Peter Huang has been appointed Chairman of Sun Art in addition to his current role as Chief Executive Officer.
Daniel Zhang, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Alibaba Group, said: “Alibaba’s strategic investment in Sun Art in 2017 was an important step in our New Retail strategy. The alliance we formed with Auchan Retail and Ruentex was instrumental in building a robust infrastructure to create opportunities and value in China’s retail sector. Led by Chief Executive Officer Peter Huang, Sun Art has achieved impressive results in its digitalization, and pursued promising synergies with businesses across the Alibaba digital economy. As the COVID-19 pandemic is accelerating the digitalization of consumer lifestyles and enterprise operations, this commitment to Sun Art serves to strengthen our New Retail vision and serve more consumers with a fully integrated experience.”
In November 2017, Alibaba Group, Auchan Retail and Ruentex Group announced a strategic alliance to digitalize and introduce New Retail solutions at Sun Art stores, including omnichannel integration and a more personalized customer experience. Over the past three years, Sun Art has made significant progress in the digital transformation under a fast-changing market environment by leveraging resources and technology from the Alibaba ecosystem, to capitalize on the growth opportunities in China’s hypermarket and supermarket space.
Today, all Sun Art physical stores in China have been integrated into Alibaba’s Taoxianda and Tmall Supermarket platforms, providing one-hour and half-day on-demand delivery through deep collaboration with other key businesses across the Alibaba ecosystem, including Ele.me and Cainiao, offering consumers greater product selection and access. As of June 30, 2020, Sun Art operates 481 hypermarkets and 3 mid-size supermarkets in China, with a focus on strengthening its position through small and offline community stores.
About Alibaba Group
Alibaba Group’s mission is to make it easy to do business anywhere. The company aims to build the future infrastructure of commerce. It envisions that its customers will meet, work and live at Alibaba and that it will be a good company that lasts for 102 years.
1Including the stake held by Alibaba Group and its related party.
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201018005074/en/
Contact information
Ivy Ke
Alibaba Group
+852 5590 9949
Ivy.ke@alibaba-inc.com
Cathy Yan
Alibaba Group
+852 9012 5806
cathy.yan@alibaba-inc.com
About Business Wire
For more than 50 years, Business Wire has been the global leader in press release distribution and regulatory disclosure.
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Media Release: Financial Worries Rise and Match Health Concerns as Cost-of-Living Pressures Mount in 20266.7.2026 11:00:00 EEST | Press release
Households around the world are feeling the strain of the rising cost of living, with financial pressure increasingly shaping everyday choices and long-term confidence. Finances and health are now tied as the top global worries, at 48% each, followed by concerns about the future at 35%, according to consumer surveys in 10 countries published in “The Allianz 3am Report 2026.” This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260703907741/en/ Allianz / IPSOS “What Worries the World” Study, April – June 2026. Financial worries, which include concerns about “rising cost of living” (71%) and “insufficient income” (51%), increased in seven out of eight countries surveyed year over year, moving up in the ranking of top three worries in Brazil, France, Germany, and the U.K., while remaining stable in Italy. The strongest increases are observed in Australia and Indonesia, where financial concerns have remained the leading worry, as well
HAZAMA ANDO Becomes an Official Partner in Helical Fusion’s Commercial Fusion Initiative and Signs MoU Toward Construction of the Fusion Pilot Plant6.7.2026 09:40:00 EEST | Press release
Helical Fusion Co., Ltd. (“Helical Fusion”), a Japan-based fusion energy startup developing fusion power plants, and HAZAMA ANDO CORPORATION (“HAZAMA ANDO”), a long-established Japanese general contractor, today announced that HAZAMA ANDO has become an Official Partner in the Helix Program, Helical Fusion’s commercial fusion initiative. The two companies have also signed a memorandum of understanding (“MoU”) to collaborate toward the construction of Helix KANATA, Helical Fusion’s Fusion Pilot Plant targeted for the 2030s. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260706176052/en/ (L-R) Kazuhiko Kuniya (Representative Director and President, HAZAMA ANDO CORPORATION) and Takaya Taguchi (Co-Founder and CEO, Helical Fusion Co., Ltd.) at a press conference in Tokyo on July 6, 2026. Fusion energy has the potential to shift the foundation of energy from natural resources to advanced technology by reproducing, on Earth, the sam
Sofinnova Partners Announces Myricx Bio Agrees to Be Acquired by Novartis6.7.2026 08:15:00 EEST | Press release
Sofinnova Partners, a leading European life sciences venture capital firm, today announced that its portfolio company Myricx Bio (“Myricx”) has reached agreement to be acquired by Novartis, for up to $1.5 billion including $1.1 billion cash upfront plus potential milestone payments. This marks Sofinnova Partners' seventh exit in three years. Myricx Bio is a UK-headquartered transatlantic biotech company focused on the discovery and development of a novel class of payloads for antibody-drug conjugates. The company's platform is built around next-generation N-myristoyltransferase inhibitor (NMTi) payloads, a differentiated mechanism of action designed to address the narrow therapeutic windows and tolerability challenges that have limited earlier generations of ADCs, such as TOPO-1 and tubulin inhibitor payload classes. Myricx Bio's two lead ADC assets, directed towards the established targets B7-H3 and HER2, are designed to bring this differentiated approach to patients across a broad ra
Global New Material International Wins Technology Innovation Best Practice Award at Sino-European ESG Conference6.7.2026 06:59:00 EEST | Press release
Global New Material International Holdings Ltd. has received the Technology Innovation Best Practice Award at the Third Sino-European Corporate ESG Best Practice Conference recently in Mainz, Germany, in recognition of its efforts to advance sustainable development through material innovation. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260705533555/en/ Thorsten Giehler (L), Director of the Economic, Social Development and Employment Division of The German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ), delivered the award to Zhou Fangchao, Executive Director and Vice President of Global New Material International. The annual conference, initiated by the Chinese Consulate General in Frankfurt and jointly organized with Chinese and European partners, recognizes corporate best practices in environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance. This year's event brought together government officials, business leaders and exper
Access Advance Welcomes Samsung and Sharp to the VVC Advance Patent Pool6.7.2026 03:00:00 EEST | Press release
Access Advance LLC today announced significant additions to the VVC Advance Patent Pool, including Samsung Electronics and Sharp Corporation joining as both Licensors and Licensees. The additions strengthen Access Advance's position in VVC licensing, bringing two of the world's largest video codec patent holders into the program on both sides of the license. "The growth we are seeing in VVC Advance reflects the broad range of industries and companies that are moving toward VVC as the next standard for video delivery," said Peter Moller, CEO of Access Advance. "Samsung and Sharp joining as both Licensors and Licensees is significant, but so is the participation of leading smartphone brands and the range of consumer electronics and technology companies now executing licenses. We are building a program that reflects where the video market is actually heading." The following companies have joined the VVC Advance Patent Pool as Licensees since the beginning of 2026: American Future Technolo
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom