Technology

Alibaba’s Ma Meets With Trump

Published

8 years ago

January 10, 2017

Alibaba’s Ma Meets With Trump to Discuss Job Creation

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. Chairman Jack Ma met with Donald Trump on Monday to discuss how the online retailer could help create 1 million new U.S. jobs, keying in on one of the president-elect’s chief concerns amid fraught relations between China and the incoming administration.

The Chinese e-commerce giant said the positions would be generated through Alibaba adding 1 million small and medium-sized U.S. businesses to its platforms, estimating that each one will hire a new person as a result of the added commerce.

Several other top executives have met with Trump in his New York headquarters promising to create U.S. jobs. But Ma’s 40-minute sit-down comes after Trump has called for high tariffs on trade with China, accused the country of stealing jobs from Americans and incited political controversy by reaching out to Taiwan. Alibaba was also recently put back on the U.S. “Notorious Markets” list, with its Taobao website cited as a haven for fake merchandise, suggesting it hasn’t done enough to fight counterfeits. Alibaba said at the time its new designation could have been influenced by politics.

Still, Alibaba needs to cultivate a positive working relationship with Trump as it aims to implement its international expansion plans. Ma’s discussion fits into Alibaba’s long-stated goal of bringing foreign goods to Chinese consumers. Ma has also said he wants the company to derive half of its revenue from outside China, which would to offset any slowdowns at home.

Alibaba shares rose 0.9 percent to $94.72 at the close in New York. The stock gained 8 percent last year.

Alibaba has a significant part of its business tied to trade in the U.S., giving it a strong incentive to avoid a situation in which Trump puts his campaign rhetoric into practice. Higher tariffs would depress demand for the AliExpress site, where Chinese retailers sell to U.S. consumers. Any ensuing trade disputes could hurt sales on Alibaba’s Tmall platform, through which U.S. and international brands sell to Chinese consumers. Last year, 7,000 U.S. brands on Alibaba’s platforms made sales worth $15 billion to Chinese consumers, according to the company.

“Jack and I are going to do some great things together,” Trump said in the lobby of the Trump Tower in New York. After the meeting, Alibaba tweeted that it “wants to create U.S. jobs by helping U.S. small businesses and farmers sell to China’s 300 million-strong middle class.”

U.S. produce sold on Alibaba’s platforms include Pacific Northwest cherries, Washington State apples, and Alaskan seafood.

Alibaba on Tuesday said it is leading a $2.6 billion bid to take department store operator Intime Retail Group Co. private, as its seeks to deepen its integration with brick-and-mortar stores in China. Alibaba has bought or invested in a number of physical retail chains in the country as it seeks growth beyond its traditional Internet business.

Trump’s meeting with Ma comes just a few weeks after he met with SoftBank Group Corp. Chief Executive Officer Masayoshi Son. In that meeting, Trump took credit for a previously announced investment by SoftBank and 50,000 jobs that fund would help create in the U.S.

Several other companies — from IBM to Ford Motor Co. — have also unveiled plans to create jobs in the country since Trump’s election, though some of the plans had been in the works before the election was decided.

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Samed Olukoya

Is the CEO and Founder of Investors King Limited. He is a seasoned foreign exchange research analyst and a published author on Yahoo Finance, Business Insider, Nasdaq, Entrepreneur.com, Investorplace, and other prominent platforms. With over two decades of experience in global financial markets, Olukoya is well-recognized in the industry.

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Telecommunications

Telecom Tariffs Set to Rise as FG Proposes 12.5% Tax Hike

Published

1 day ago

October 22, 2024

Yetunde Olugbenga

Telecommunication service providers in Nigeria have announced an impending increase in customer tariffs for calls and data.

The anticipated rise is attributed to the Federal Government’s proposed 12.5% value-added tax on telecommunications, which would represent a 66.67% increase from the current 7.5%.

According to telecom operators, the increase in tax would force them to also increase the tariff charged for consumers’ calls and data.

The Global System for Mobile Communications (GSMA), a non-profit organisation representing the interests of mobile network operators worldwide stated that Nigeria’s telecom industry is already overtaxed. Therefore, any increase in the tax rate would impact customer tariffs.

GSMA declared that the telecommunication industry pays over 50 different taxes to various government arms.

This tax increase is in line with the new Bill reform, which imposes excise duties on technology and consumer services industries, including telecommunications, gaming, gambling, lotteries, and betting services.

As part of a broader tax reform initiative, the proposed Bill aims to unify the fiscal legislation governing taxation in the country.

“A Bill for an Act to Repeal Certain Acts on Taxation and Consolidate the Legal Frameworks relating to Taxation and Enact the Nigeria Tax Act to Provide for Taxation of Income, Transactions, and Instruments, and Related Matters,” the Bill read.

“Services, including telecommunications, gaming, gambling, betting, and lotteries however described, provided in Nigeria shall be charged with duties of excise at the rates specified under the Tenth Schedule to this Act in a manner as may be prescribed by the Service,” the Bill outlined.

“Amount of an excisable transaction is the amount chargeable for the service by the service provider, both in money or money’s worth,” the Bill indicated

In response to the proposed tax reform, the President of the National Association of Telecoms Subscribers, Adeolu Ogunbanjo, expressed concern that the government’s proposal could cripple the telecommunications industry.

“They are essentially trying to kill the industry by imposing more burdens on it,” he stated

Fintech

US Continues to dominate Global FinTech Landscape in Q3 2024, Witnesses Funding of $2.7B

Published

5 days ago

October 18, 2024

Samed Olukoya

The US boasts of a bustling FinTech landscape with more than 7K funded companies and 137 active FinTech Unicorns. Though the US ranks first globally in terms of funding in the FinTech sector in Q3 2024, this is the least funded quarter in the past five years.

Q4 2021 was the highest funded quarter in this space, after which the funding started to experience a steady decline.

Tracxn, a leading global SaaS-based market intelligence platform, stated in its Geo Quarterly Report: US FinTech Q3 2024.

The US FinTech startup ecosystem raised $2.7 billion in Q3 2024, a 30% decline compared with $3.9 billion raised in Q3 2023 and a 40% decline from $4.5 billion in Q2 2024.

Late-stage funding in Q3 2024 fell 32% to $1.3 billion, from $1.9 billion raised in Q3 2023. Early-stage investments stood at $1.2 billion in Q3 2024, a drop of 29% from $1.7 billion in Q3 2023. Seed-stage funding, too, fell 49% to $186 million from $364 million in Q3 2023.

Three companies attracted funding of $200 million and above. Human Interest raised $267 million in a Series D round at a post-money valuation of $1.33 billion, while FLYR raised $225 million in a Series D round. Earned Wealth secured $200 million in a Series B round.

Three other companies reported $100M+ rounds, with Aven becoming the only new unicorn in the third quarter of this year, after raising $142 million at a valuation of $1 billion.

Finance and Accounting Tech, Payments and Investment Tech were the top-performing sectors based on funding in Q3 2024 in this space.

The Finance & Accounting Tech segment witnessed total funding of $643 million in Q3 2024, a drop of 34% compared to $967 million raised in Q3 2023.

Funding raised by the Payments sector fell 22% to $573 million in Q3 2024 from $737 million in Q3 2023. Investment Tech companies raised a total funding of $547 million in Q3 2024, 18% lower than the $669 million raised in Q3 2023.

The third quarter of 2024 was weak in terms of exits. None of the companies from the US FinTech sector went public in Q3 2024, as against one IPO each in Q3 2023 and Q2 2024.

The number of acquisitions too, fell to 48 in Q3 2024 from 54 in Q3 2023 and 62 in Q2 2024. ShareFile was acquired by Progress at a price of $875 million, and Stronghold Digital Mining was acquired by Bitfarms for $175 million.

Among US cities, San Francisco and New York City together accounted for 50% of the total funding raised by the sector in the third quarter of this year.

FinTech startups based in San Francisco raised $750.2 million, while those headquartered in New York City and Santa Monica raised $610.1 million and $225 million.

Y Combinator, Techstars and a16z are the overall top investors in this space. Y Combinator, Castle Island Ventures & Plug and Play Tech Center were the top seed-stage investors in Q3 2024, while Curql, Redpoint Ventures and Brewer Lane Ventures took the lead in early-stage investments.

The US government is taking several initiatives to stimulate investment and innovation in the FinTech sector, which could give a boost to these startups in the coming years.

E-commerce

South Africa, Tunisia Record Job Losses as Jumia Shuts Down Outlets Over Diminishing Returns, Hopes on Nigeria, Others

Published

6 days ago

October 17, 2024

Ugwoke Ogbodo

Africa-focused e-commerce retailer Jumia Technologies has announced its decision to shut down its South African online fashion retailer Zando and its Tunisian operations by the end of the year.

The development, Investors King gathered, followed diminishing returns in the countries which has been having significant impacts on the firm.

Francis Dufay, the Chief Executive Officer of the retailer giant, expressed strong confidence in Nigeria’s market, saying the firm will refocus on more profitable markets such as Nigeria.

Dufay said Jumia is aiming at more profits, hence, its decision to implement aggressive cost-cutting measures, which include reducing its workforce, exiting the everyday grocery and food delivery sectors, and scaling back delivery services unrelated to its core e-commerce business.

He said the trajectory of the South Africa and Tunisia did not align with the strategy of the group, citing complex macroeconomic conditions, a competitive landscape, and limited medium-term growth potential in these regions.

Stressing that the group’s exit plan is the right decision, Dufay emphasised that the move will allow the company to concentrate its resources on the other nine markets including Nigeria, where growth prospects are more promising.

Jumia’s remaining markets include Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, and Nigeria.

Dufay maintained that success in these regions could help recover volumes lost from the closures in South Africa and Tunisia.

Giving more facts on the level of shortage Jumia incurred in South Africa and Tunisia, he noted that Zando and the Tunisian operations contributed only 2.7% of total orders and 3% of Gross Merchandise Value during the first half of the year.

Zando.co.za, founded in 2012, has established itself as a prominent online fashion platform in South Africa. Meanwhile, Jumia’s Tunisian operations have been running under the Jumia brand for a decade, offering general merchandise.

Dufay confirmed that there are no plans to sell either operation, which will hold clearance sales before their shutdown.

Findings by Investors King revealed that no fewer than 110 persons will lose their jobs in the affected countries once the closures take effect.

Although some employees may be relocated within the company’s other divisions.

This decision comes shortly after South Africa’s largest online retail group, Takealot, announced the sale of its fashion subsidiary, Superbalist, amid rising competition from fast-fashion e-commerce giants like Shein and Temu. Dufay acknowledged that the growth potential in South Africa is increasingly challenging due to the highly competitive environment.