Jack Ma\'s Alibaba and Alipay will hold between 30 per cent and 40 per cent of One97 after the investment.
China's biggest e-commerce company Alibaba Group Holding Ltd and its separate payment unit Alipay are in advanced talks to buy stake in Noida-headquartered mobile internet firm One97 Communications for $550 million, according to a Reuters report.
One97 Communications owns and runs an online payment platform Paytm. Paytm started by offering mobile recharge and utility bill payments and currently it offers a full marketplace to consumers on its mobile apps. The firm claims to have over 20 million registered users and more than 15 million orders per month.
The report further states (citing the sources) that the investment is expected to be announced by the end of this month. Under the terms of the deal, Jack Ma's Alibaba and Alipay will hold between 30 per cent and 40 per cent of One97 after the investment.
According to a latest report in VCCircle, the deal would value One97 at around $1.5 billion pre-money or just over $2 billion, post-money. Further, the investment will be used to expand Paytm services with a view to dominate the online payment business that is expected to grow rapidly in the next few years in India, one source said.
The sources declined to be named as talks for the deal are confidential. Alibaba declined to comment. A spokeswoman for One97 said the company was in the process of raising money and would make an announcement once this was complete.
Business Opportunities
Our Group Sites
Popular Cities
