Alibaba Group Announces Strategic Investment in YTO Express

Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) today announced it has agreed to take a minority stake in Shanghai YTO Express (Logistics) Co., Ltd, one of China’s leading logistics companies. Both companies will cooperate in developing optimal logistics solutions for China in order to raise operational efficiency in the industry.

YTO Express is one of 14 logistics partners that work closely with Cainiao, the logistics affiliate of Alibaba Group. Cainiao and YTO Express will work together to enhance the industry’s logistics management capabilities and international and rural delivery services. This will in turn raise the bar on service quality and user experience for merchants, consumers and logistics companies.

Cainiao was founded by Alibaba Group in May 2013 in partnership with a consortium of logistics companies. Cainiao aims to build a nationwide logistics platform that connects delivery companies, warehouses and distribution centers together in order to enable higher efficiency in China’s logistics industry and a better customer and merchant experience.

“As a leading player in China’s logistics industry, our collaboration with Alibaba Group and Cainiao will boost our strategic product and service offerings to catalyze a breakthrough in efficiency within China’s logistic sector,” said YTO Express Chairman YU Wei Jiao.

Judy TONG, Senior Vice President of Alibaba Group and President of Cainiao said, “The strategic investment in YTO Express reflects our commitment to improving quality and service standards in China’s logistics industry. As a platform, we look forward to working closely with partners who share our vision in developing an efficient logistics infrastructure and solutions that will drive development of China’s logistics sector in order to fully satisfy our customers’ needs.”

About Alibaba Group

Alibaba Group’s mission is to make it easy to do business anywhere. The company is the largest online and mobile commerce company in the world in terms of gross merchandise volume. Founded in 1999, the company provides the fundamental technology infrastructure and marketing reach to help businesses leverage the power of the Internet to establish an online presence and conduct commerce with hundreds of millions of consumers and other businesses.

Alibaba Group’s major businesses include:

• Taobao Marketplace (www.taobao.com), China's largest online shopping destination
• Tmall.com (www.tmall.com), China’s largest third-party platform for brands and retailers
• Juhuasuan (www.juhuasuan.com), China’s most popular online group buying marketplace
• Alitrip (www.alitrip.com), a leading online travel booking platform
• AliExpress (www.aliexpress.com), a global online marketplace for consumers to buy directly from China
• Alibaba.com (www.alibaba.com), China’s largest global online wholesale platform for small businesses
• 1688.com (www.1688.com), a leading online wholesale marketplace in China
• Alibaba Cloud Computing (www.aliyun.com), a provider of cloud computing services to businesses and entrepreneurs

About YTO Express

Established in 2000, YTO Express has become the top service provider in the sector, offering the most comprehensive logistics coverage in China after China Post. With an outstanding portfolio of long term clients, YTO Express manages 8 logistics compound nationwide, operating 72 transfer centres and over 12,500 pick-up points. It has over 180,000 employees servicing more than 2,300 Chinese cities. As one of the three logistics companies with a license for aviation logistics, YTO Express has begun offering the service since last year.