New York, August 11, 2005 –LAWFUEL – The Law News Network – Debevoise & Plimpton LLP is advising Alibaba.com Corporation (Alibaba) in its definitive agreement with Yahoo! Inc. (Nasdaq:YHOO), under which Yahoo! will contribute its Yahoo! China business to Alibaba and invest $1 billion in cash to purchase Alibaba shares from the company and other shareholders in order to acquire an approximate 40 percent economic interest with 35 percent voting rights in Alibaba, making it the largest strategic investor in Alibaba. The overall transaction is valued at more than US $4 billion.
The combined entity will consist of: Alibaba International, the world’s largest online marketplace for global trade; Alibaba China, the largest online small- and medium-sized enterprise (SME) community in China; AliPay, China’s leading online payment service; Tao Bao, China’s most popular e-commerce website; and, the Yahoo! China properties, which includes the Yahoo! China portal and its communications and advertising services, Yahoo! Search Technology, and 3721, a leading keyword search service. Yahoo! also intends to contribute its interest in 1Pai, one of the leading consumer commerce offerings in China, into Alibaba. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2005.
Debevoise is a leading international law firm with offices in New York, London, Paris, Frankfurt, Washington, Moscow, Hong Kong and Shanghai.
The Debevoise team is led by partner Thomas M. Britt III and includes partners Jeffrey P. Cunard, Peter A. Furci and David P. Mason, counsel Judith L. Church and associates Naomi Aoyama, Manoj Bhargava, Dafei Chen, Shareen A. Farhad, Andrew H. Lo, Sean D. Wissman and summer associate Henry Han Xi Lau.
