Alibaba may be considering an IPO in the US
Speculation comes after senior executives of the e-commerce firm hold closed-door discussion with representative of the US stock exchange
Alibaba Group, the mainland's largest e-commerce company, could be saying "Open Sesame" to a public listing on the Nasdaq Stock Market if an afternoon meeting between the two parties was any indication.
Senior finance executives of the Hangzhou-based company, which is widely expected to be planning its initial public offering this year, held a closed-door discussion with a representative of the American exchange yesterday at an undisclosed venue in Hong Kong, two people familiar with the situation said.
The executives met Yeeli Hua Zheng, the Beijing-based chief representative in China for Nasdaq OMX, the operator of the Nasdaq exchange in New York.
"This meeting is significant because it suggests Alibaba could be actively exploring other public listing options besides Hong Kong," one of the sources said.
Speculation about Alibaba's plans to pursue an IPO later this year was fuelled by the decision of company founder Jack Ma Yun to step down as chief executive on May 10. Ma will remain the group's executive chairman.
That news came a few days after Ma announced in January that Alibaba was conducting a sweeping restructuring that would see it divided into 25 business units under the direction of two committees, one for strategy and one for operations.