Jiang, who since 2023 has overseen a division that consistently outperformed other parts of the Alibaba empire, will take the helm of a business struggling to grow during a deep Chinese economic downturn.
The consolidation of businesses under his wing marks the latest in a series of restructurings undertaken by the once-dominant internet pioneer, which hasn’t consistently delivered since Beijing in 2020 launched a sweeping crackdown on Alibaba and its peers. At one point, the company even contemplated a breakup of its main businesses.
Its Chinese e-commerce operation eked out just 1% growth in the September quarter, as it battled rising rivals like PDD Holdings Inc. and ByteDance Ltd. The international division, which encompasses Lazada and the Temu-like AliExpress, expanded retail revenue 35%.
The new division will also fold in smaller services such as international procurement site Alibaba.com, Idle Fish and Turkey’s Trendyol, Alibaba said in a statement.
See also: Why facial recognition is the future of hospitality
Jiang takes over a Chinese operation previously led by fellow Alibaba veteran Trudy Dai. Alibaba’s US shares stood largely unchanged in pre-market trading.
“The new business group will drive significant synergies across global supply chains and support merchant growth opportunities with expanded market access and success in China and beyond,” Alibaba said in a statement. “This decision reflects Alibaba’s unwavering commitment to investing in its core commerce business and enhancing the quality of operations to win in the highly competitive e-commerce sector.”
What Bloomberg Intelligence Says
Alibaba’s merger of its China-centric e-commerce unit, Taobao-Tmall, with its growing operations outside the mainland, AIDC, suggests Chinese consumer goods makers and traders will continue to expand overseas via online platforms in 2025. This may allay fears that President Trump’s planned tariffs on China will decimate sellers’ profitability and stall sales on PDD’s Temu, AliExpress and Amazon which source merchandise from the mainland.
See also: NIE partners AWS to drive innovation in educational technology
- Catherine Lim and Trini Tan, analysts
Jiang was a rising star at Alibaba before he was removed in 2020 from the company’s influential partnership, a select group of people who influence the board’s makeup. That demotion came after his wife took to social media to warn another woman not to “mess with” her husband.
The post ignited a frenzy of online speculation about an affair and questions about Alibaba’s business decisions and investments — a public relations debacle for the then high-flying firm.
He returned to the partnership in 2023, when he also took over the international division. That unit has since consistently outperformed other divisions including the much-touted cloud arm.
