Alibaba unit raises record US$4.5b to fund growth

Beijing

ALIBABA Group Holding Ltd's finance affiliate has raised a record US$4.5 billion from a consortium of powerful state-backed investors to bankroll its global expansion.

The new funding marked the technology industry's single largest round of private financing and surpassed an initial target set by Zhejiang Ant Small & Micro Financial Services Group Co, controlled by billionaire Alibaba founder Jack Ma. Chinese sovereign wealth fund China Investment Corp and an investment vehicle of China Construction Bank Corp, the country's second largest lender, joined as new investors, it said in a statement.