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Alibaba to establish e- hub in Malaysia, lift digital economy

Alibaba Group Holding announced on Wednesday the establishment of an e- hub in Malaysia under the Electronic World Trade Platform ( eWTP) initiative proposed by Jack Ma Yun to push the digital economy in the Southeast Asian nation.

The establishment will be carried out in partnership with the Malaysia Digital Economy Corp.

This is the first e- hub outside of China for Alibaba, and it includes a logistics hub, one- stop online cross- border trading services platform and cooperation in e- payments and financing, according to a press release the e- commerce giant sent to the Global Times.

The hub will serve as Alibaba’s regional distribution hub, functioning “as a centralized customs clearance, warehousing and fulfillment facility for Malaysia and the region, to deliver faster clearance for imports and exports,” said the press release.

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak and Alibaba founder Ma attended the launch ceremo- ny in Kuala Lumpur.

The e- hub is a part of Malaysia’s digital free trade zone ( DFTZ), which was launched jointly by Najib and Ma. Ma said the first overseas e- hub would be aimed at empowering small and medium- sized enterprises ( SMEs) as well as the younger generation.

Alibaba’s logistics platform Cainiao and its e- commerce website Lazada will lead other Alibaba subsidiaries and affiliates in the development of a regional e- commerce near the Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

Ant Financial signed an agreement with leading Malaysian banks CIMB and Maybank to explore collaboration opportunities in e- payment and financing services in Malaysia

While attending the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum in Russia last June, Ma proposed the building up of digital free trade zones for small businesses, saying that such trading areas can serve as e- commerce hubs that will link markets around the world.