Alibaba's board of directors increased to 11

Netease Technology News July 12 news, Alibaba Group Friday submitted to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) IPO (initial public offering) prospectus updates. The documents show that once the Alibaba Group goes public, a group of Jack Ma and other executives and investors can appoint two additional directors to the board of directors.

The move will increase the number of Alibaba directors from 9 to 11 and will strengthen the group's control of the board after Alibaba is listed.

It is expected that Alibaba's listing and trading may become the largest technology company IPO in the history of the United States. Alibaba accounts for four-fifths of China's online commerce, with the group handling more deals last year than Amazon and eBay combined.

In the updated prospectus, Alibaba will raise its valuation to 130 billion U.S. dollars from the previous declaration of 116 billion U.S. dollars.

Although these figures are below the valuations of several analysts, it is noteworthy that the calculations are for setting employee salaries and not necessarily for IPO prices.

Alibaba also detailed in the document the decision to divest Alipay operations in 2011, which made a lot of controversy.

Jack founded Alibaba in 1999 and subsequently extended the company's business to include electronic payments, financial investments and more. However, the company's complex management structure and Jack Ma's outward investment concern the potential conflicts of interest and whether investors can influence Alibaba's strategy and direction.

He and 26 other Alibaba co-founders and senior executives formed a strong group called Alibaba Partners. Alibaba said the interests of the group may conflict with the interests of investors.

Alibaba wrote: "This management structure and contractual arrangements will limit your ability to influence the company, including any matters discussed at the board level."

Jack Ma has planned to appoint four of the nine directors prior to the IPO. According to the latest information disclosed above, if the board of directors is enlarged, they can designate six out of 11 directors.

Ma owns 8.9% of Alibaba Group. Other Alibaba investors include Japan's Softbank and Yahoo, which hold 34.3% and 22.5% of Alibaba Group shares respectively.

In the updated prospectus, Alibaba said the group needed to divest Alipay in 2011 and turn it into a domestic business in order to avoid a delay in obtaining a business license due to the newly enacted Chinese regulatory rules then.

Alibaba Group will Alipay sold to a group of investors, including Jack Ma, Ma through Zhejiang Alibaba e-commerce company holds 46% stake in Alipay.

Alibaba said: "This move will enable Alipay in May 2011 without delay to obtain payment of business license, and the Chinese retail business or Alipay itself will not cause any adverse impact." (Chu Shen)