Alibaba names Gobi Partners its investment manager for $130-mn Entrepreneurs Fund

Chinese e-Commerce major Alibaba Group Holding Limited has announced that Gobi Partners will be the first investment manager for the new HK$ 1 billion ($130million) Entrepreneurs Fund.

The Alibaba Entrepreneur Fund aims at providing financial support to startups and budding entrepreneurs. Alibaba Group announced a plan to float a not-for-profit fund in February and officially launched it on 18 November. The newly-launched fund will also provide internship opportunities for graduates.

A day later, Alibaba Group also launched Entrepreneurs Fund for Taiwan.

As per the eligibility criteria, a majority of founders of the company should be permanent residents of Hong Kong as a considerable portion of operations should be carried out in Hong Kong.

In a report by Venture Beat, Alibaba CEO Jack Ma took a panel to US President Barack Obama on 17 November as part of his business expansion drive.

Alibaba Group said that the newly-launched fund would support the aspirations of entrepreneurs, who can utilize resources being provided by Alibaba's ecosystem in e-Commerce, logistics, mobile platforms, cloud computing and financial services. Established a decade ago, Gobi Partners focuses on home-grown innovation and manages six funds with offices spread across Asia.

Alibaba Group's Entrepreneurs Fund will invest in startups in addition to different phases of existing companies as well. Qualified businesses can leverage the platforms and infrastructure of Alibaba Group.

According to a company press release, Alibaba's Cindy Chow will be Executive Director. The board of directors will have Allan Zeman, founder and Chairman of Lan Kwai Fong Group, Bernard Chan, President of Asia Financial Group and Asia Insurance, and Savio Kwan, Alibaba's President and Chief Operating Officer during 2001-2003.

According to Alibaba Group, Gobi Partners, and other fund managers will have the freedom to take investment decisions as they can identify startups, growth and expansion phases.

Alibaba Group also on 19 November launched Entrepreneurs Fund for Taiwan also. Alibaba Group has allocated NT$10 billion for Taiwan Entrepreneurs Fund. Taiwanese startups and entrepreneurs can take advantage of resources available on Alibaba's ecosystem in e-Commerce, logistics, mobile platforms, cloud computing and financial services.

Alibaba will also take graduates as interns at the company's operations. The release further stated that "the fund will also provide 200 internship opportunities each year for graduates and final year students of local tertiary education institutions to work for a period of six to 12 months at Alibaba or companies in the Alibaba ecosystem in mainland China." The fund will accept applications from early 2016 onwards.

Alibaba Group has selected a subsidiary of China Development Industrial Bank (CDIB) as its fund manager. Andrew Lee, former CEO of EnTie Bank, will be executive director of Taiwan Fund. Lee specializes in fund raising, mergers & acquisitions (M&As), organizational development, financial and risk management.