A New Reshuffle At Alibaba Puts Eddie Wu In Charge Of Taobao And Tmall

(CTN News) – In the latest management shakeup at Alibaba Group, CEO Eddie Wu is set to assume the top role at the company’s Taobao and Tmall e-commerce business, taking over from Trudy Dai.

Dai, who is one of the 18 cofounders of Alibaba, will now focus on establishing an asset management company, as stated in an internal letter from Alibaba Chairman Joe Tsai.

This announcement follows Wu’s appointment as CEO of the group in September, succeeding Daniel Zhang. Wu has been serving as the chairman of Taobao and Tmall Group since May 2023.

Alibaba, once a dominant force in the e-commerce industry, is facing challenges from competitors like PDD, while consumer spending in China remains sluggish.

PDD’s shares, which are listed in the U.S., have experienced a remarkable surge of more than 80% this year, surpassing the market capitalization of Alibaba. In contrast, shares have witnessed a decline of approximately 14% year to date.

One factor contributing to the decline in Alibaba’s shares was the news last month that the company had abandoned its plans to list its cloud business due to U.S. restrictions on exporting advanced chips to China.

In March, Alibaba announced a significant restructuring into six units, to facilitate individual stock listings, particularly for its cloud business.

In September, Wu took on the role of acting chairman and CEO of Cloud Intelligence Group after Zhang’s sudden departure from the business unit.

According to Tsai’s letter, Eddie’s leadership in both Alibaba Cloud and the Taobao and Tmall Group will ensure a strong focus on and substantial investment in our two core businesses of cloud computing and e-commerce, while also enabling TTG to transform through technological innovation.

The letter also mentioned that a new generation of management leaders, who have acquired essential skills and experience from the ground up, will soon be empowered.

Dai, who successfully fulfilled the company’s mission regarding Taobao and Tmall, will now be able to leverage her strengths in her new role at the asset management company, as stated in the letter.

During Alibaba’s most recent earnings call in mid-November, the company revealed its plans to monetize its non-core assets and highlighted its $67 billion balance sheet in equity securities and other investments. However, Tsai’s letter did not provide specific details about these non-core assets.

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