By South China Morning Post | Created at 2024-11-22 12:21:33 | Updated at 2024-11-22 17:37:15
5 hours ago
Jiang, 39, who has been serving as chief executive of Alibaba International Digital Commerce Group (AIDC), was appointed by the Hangzhou-based tech conglomerate on Thursday to lead the newly formed Alibaba E-commerce Business Group.
The new unit will integrate Taobao and Tmall Group (TTG), AIDC, 1688 Marketplace, Idle Fish and the other e-commerce operations of Alibaba, owner of the South China Morning Post.
Jiang’s promotion reflects Alibaba chief executive Eddie Wu Yongming’s broader strategy to position more millennials – typically defined as those born from 1981 to 1996 – in key roles to fend off fierce competition from younger rivals such as PDD Holdings, owner of popular discount-shopping platforms Pinduoduo and Temu.
The appointment marks another major step up the ranks for Jiang at Alibaba, where he has cemented his status as an heir apparent, more than a year after he was reinstated as member of the company’s partnership – a supreme corporate governance body with the right to nominate directors.
Once a small proportion of Alibaba’s business empire, AIDC under Jiang has become a major revenue-generating operation, as it covers diverse cross-border e-commerce platforms such as AliExpress, Lazada and Trendyol. In the recent September quarter, this unit’s revenue surged 29 per cent year on year to 31.7 billion yuan (US$4.4 billion).
