The Business of Fashion
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
HONG KONG, China — Ant Financial Services Group, the payment affiliate of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, is in talks with banks to raise $2 billion (£1.6 billion) to $3 billion (£2.4 billion) in debt, a person with direct knowledge of the matter said on Thursday.
The world's largest financial technology firm plans to use some part of the proceeds to fund its acquisition of US money-transfer company MoneyGram International Inc, announced last month, said the person.
The new round of funding, if completed, could also be used to boost its holding in other companies, including Indian mobile e-commerce website Paytm, the person said, declining to be named as the talks are not public yet.
"It is the market practice for a globalised company like Ant Financial to raise debt in US dollars," a representative of Ant Financial told Reuters, when contacted for comment on technology news website The Information's report the company was looking to raise more than $3 billion in debt.
By Sumeet Chatterjee; editor: Himani Sarkar.
In 2020, like many companies, the $50 billion yoga apparel brand created a new department to improve internal diversity and inclusion, and to create a more equitable playing field for minorities. In interviews with BoF, 14 current and former employees said things only got worse.
For fashion’s private market investors, deal-making may provide less-than-ideal returns and raise questions about the long-term value creation opportunities across parts of the fashion industry, reports The State of Fashion 2024.
A blockbuster public listing should clear the way for other brands to try their luck. That, plus LVMH results and what else to watch for in the coming week.
L Catterton, the private-equity firm with close ties to LVMH and Bernard Arnault that’s preparing to take Birkenstock public, has become an investment giant in the consumer-goods space, with stakes in companies selling everything from fashion to pet food to tacos.