Wal-Mart Acquires Minority Stake in Yihaodian
21st Century Business Herald, 5/16/11
Yu Gang, co-founder and chairman of Shanghai-based Yishiduo E-Commerce, operator of B2C e-commerce website Yihaodian, yesterday said that he could not yet disclose details concerning the company's cooperation with global retail giant Wal-Mart, but an announcement would be made next week.
On May 13, 2011, Wal-Mart announced that it acquired a minority equity stake in Yihaodian and expects the deal to close within 60 days. Neither side has disclosed the transaction value or the amount of equity involved in the deal.
A source within Yihaodian has revealed that multiple investors have continuously been in contact with the company since its launch in 2008. However, Yihaodian has only accepted funding from China's Ping An Insurance, which reportedly acquired an 80% stake in the company. Yihaodian has not officially confirmed this information.
Yu said that the company's annual revenue for the three years since its founding has been RMB 4.17 mln, RMB 46 mln and RMB 805 mln, respectively. Yu expects that the company will become profitable in approximately two to three years, with revenues reaching RMB 6 bln.
Editor's Note: According to Wal-Mart's announcement, Yihaodian offers more than 75,000 stock-keeping units (SKUs) and has achieved a significant position in online grocery sales, as well as in categories such as childcare products, consumer electronics and apparel. The company has 2,000 employees and an existing logistics network based in Shanghai, Beijing, and Guangzhou.
Keywords: Yu Gang M&A e-commerce Internet revenue B2C Wal-Mart Yihaodian Ping An Insurance Yishiduo HR investment
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