Alibaba Invests $692 Million for a Presence in Physical Retail

Alibaba Group is investing about $692 million in retail company Intime Retail with the aim of setting up a joint venture to provide links between its online and physical retail businesses in China. The Chinese e-commerce giant will invest $214 million in shares of Intime, besides acquiring $478 million in convertible bonds, according to a filing by Intime on Monday to the Hong Kong stock exchange. The equity investment will give Alibaba a 9.9 percent share of the enhanced share capital of the company.