SINGAPORE: Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd will invest an additional US$1bil in Southeast Asian online retailer Lazada Group, boosting its stake by nearly a third to 83%, the two companies said in a joint statement.



The move doubles Alibaba’s investment in the firm after last year’s deal to buy a controlling stake in Lazada for about US$1bil.



Lazada, founded in 2012, is headquartered in Singapore and also operates in Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.



In the twelve months ended March 31, 2017, Lazada had about 23 million annual active buyers, according to Alibaba’s annual report. - Reuters

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