Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. has abandoned its $11 billion cloud business spinoff and public listing plans, citing the escalating US-China technological rivalry.
Chairman Joseph Tsai and CEO Eddie Wu, acknowledging the need for a “reset,” pointed to the increasing US restrictions on chip sales to China as a driving factor in the decision.
Wu emphasized the imperative to provide “cash to make investments” in the AI-driven landscape, requiring a robust and highly scaled infrastructure.
Wall Street responded swiftly to the surprise move, with Alibaba’s shares plummeting 9.1% in New York trading, wiping out over $20 billion of market value, marking their most substantial drop in over a year.
The decision comes amid Alibaba’s efforts to recover from the pandemic, navigate China’s tech industry crackdown, and compete with emerging players like PDD Holdings and ByteDance’s Douyin.
The Biden administration’s stringent export controls on chips critical for Alibaba’s cloud services, designed for AI use, played a pivotal role.
The cloud business, essential for Alibaba’s AI initiatives, faces challenges due to the US sanctions impacting chip supplies.
Instead of the spinoff, Alibaba will focus on organic growth for the cloud unit and issue its inaugural annual dividend of $2.5 billion.
This surprising move reflects the challenges posed by US-China tensions and underscores the complexities Chinese tech giants face in navigating global geopolitical issues.
“The strength of the business itself is an issue.” – Li Chengdong, Head of Haitun Technology Think Tank.
“The market is scratching its head. The first annual dividend looks like compensation to shareholders.
However, it may not fully offset the shock given the higher value of the cloud unit.” – Willer Chen, Research Analyst at Forsyth Barr Asia.
