ASI Acquires PRINTING United Alliance's Promo-Focused Events and Media Portfolio   Learn More

News

Alibaba's IPO Sum Already Covered

China-based Alibaba Group has already received enough orders to cover its IPO sum.

China-based Alibaba Group has already received enough orders to cover its IPO sum, according to a report from Reuters. The Chinese e-commerce firm is set to price its shares between $60 and $66, according to a regulatory filing. With a full set of orders, the overall offering would be worth as much as $21.1 billion, making it the largest-ever technology IPO ever, ahead of Facebook’s $16 billion sum in 2012.

The news came just two days into the company’s IPO launch road tour, which was coordinated with a 10-day stretch of meetings with potential investors in the U.S. On the first two days, Alibaba co-founder and executive chairman Jack Ma met with investors in New York and Boston to answer questions about the company’s expansion plans and its accounting practices.

IPO underwriters are retaining the option to sell additional shares, which could put Alibaba’s IPO as high as $24.3 billion. If realized, the IPO would be the largest ever – greater than Agricultural Bank of China Ltd’s $22.1 billion listing in 2010. The IPO is expected to be priced next Thursday, September 18. Alibaba has been listed before – seven years ago on the Hong Kong stock market under Alibaba.com. It delisted two years ago, buying back its shares at the original offer price (HK$13.50 or $1.74), and nearly 50% higher than the firm’s final share price.

In its last fiscal year ended on March 31, Alibaba earned $3.7 billion, making it more profitable than U.S. e-commerce companies eBay and Amazon combined. For the quarter ended in June, Alibaba’s sales jumped 46% to $2.54 billion and its net income almost tripled to $1.99 billion. Founded in his apartment by current Counselor Power 50 member Jack Ma in 1999, Alibaba sells across multiple platforms, including in the B2B space. Thousands of promotional products are widely available on the firm’s sites, including flagship Alibaba.com.