Alibaba Group is exploring an initial public offering in the United States for its international e-commerce division, which includes the Lazada and AliExpress brands.
According to sources familiar with the matter, the project is still in an early stage and the size of the IPO has not been defined. The group is in discussions with banks that could possibly support the operation.
The division, which competes with rivals such as Amazon.com in markets outside of China, is one of six units Alibaba is splitting into. Indeed, in March, Alibaba announced plans to divide its empire into sectors such as e-commerce, logistics and cloud, each of which it will explore fundraising and IPOs when the time is right.
Should the IPO materialize, the Alibaba division would join several other high-profile Chinese firms, including fast-fashion leader Shein, as they seek to tap American capital despite rising tensions between the world‘s two largest economies. A US listing could attract global investors reluctant to invest directly in China.