Alibaba plans to raise $1.53 billion from Cloud, Commerce Push exchangeable bonds

(Reuters) – Chinese technology giant Alibaba Group is trying to raise approximately $12 billion ($1.53 billion) through exchangeable bonds to boost investments in cloud infrastructure and global commerce operations, the company said Thursday.

Investors can later exchange these bonds related to Alibaba health technology for Alibaba Health stocks, and the bonds will not pay interest over time.

Alibaba Group holds approximately 64% stake in Alibaba Health, according to exchange filings.

Debt sales were the largest contract in the Asia-Pacific region in 2024, following Alibaba’s $5 billion double currency bonds in November.

Best known for its e-commerce business in China, Alibaba is accelerating its investment in AI, building standalone offerings around the Qwen AI model and expanding its cloud services.

It also announced its infrastructure investments in Thailand, Mexico and South Korea.

The company’s bond offering plan will arise as more investors tap on Asian credit markets after financial and financial stimulus packages by Beijing policymakers improve regional debt appeals.

The Chinese tech company became exchangeable bonds to reduce its holdings, such as when it raised $2 billion in March through the sale of a note that can be exchanged for Trip.com stock.

Alibaba said Thursday that the Health Unit is a subsidiary integrated with Alibaba’s flagship healthcare platform at the time of its issuance, and it expects it to follow both future bond exchanges to Alibaba’s health stock.

Chinese budget retailer Miniso completed a $550 million convertible bond transaction in January and chose to use Hong Kong-listed stocks in place of the US Deposit Receipt (ADR) traded in the US.

($1 = HK$7.8496)

(Reporting by Rishav Chatterjee of Bengaluru, edited by Tasim Zahid and Shailesh Kuber)