What the war between Alibaba and Tencent says about strategy

In a market of rapid technology changes and shifting consumer expectations, the traditional analyse-plan-execute approach is not good enough.

Published Fri, Sep 11, 2020 · 09:50 PM

Ant Group

WHEN Alibaba Group went public on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on Sept 18, 2014, chief executive officer (CEO) Jack Ma said of the record-setting US$25 billion initial public offering: "What we raised today is not money, it's trust."

Six years on, investors remain loyal to the e-commerce giant - Alibaba's stock is trading at four times its opening price on the NYSE. But the company's faith in its future in the United States has been shaken by recent heightened tension between Washington and Beijing.

This sets the stage for the listing of Ant Group, an Alibaba spin-off that has evolved into the wo…