Alibaba aims to raise Hong Kong listing to attract Chinese investment

(Reuters) – Shareholders of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba have approved a plan to raise the status of its Hong Kong-listed subsidiary to a primary listing, the company said on Friday, a move expected to attract huge investment from mainland China.

The company founded by Jack Ma originally proposed the idea several years ago, at a time when geopolitical tensions between China and the United States were rising.

The upgrade allows Alibaba to participate in a program that will connect the Shenzhen and Shanghai stock exchanges with the Hong Kong stock exchange.

The decision was expected to be welcomed by the company’s investors, who have long been concerned about the company’s growth prospects in the face of new market rivals such as PDD Holdings.

Alibaba said the move to a dual listing does not involve any issuance of new shares or even any fundraising by the company.

The company’s Hong Kong-listed shares were up 0.7% in early trading at HK$82.2.

(Reporting by Rishav Chatterjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich)