As IPO Nears, Alibaba Preps Employees for $40 Billion Windfall

As Alibaba prepares for what could be the biggest tech company IPO to date, the Chinese e-commerce giant has been counseling employees on how to deal with the roughly $41 billion they could unlock through a New York listing. While some staffers have enquired if premium brand BMW sells cars in Alibaba's corporate orange, others may invest windfall stock gains in property in North America or channel funds back into startup ventures in China, hoping to build future Alibabas, bankers and financial planners say.