Alibaba in talks to buy Rocket Internet’s Asian e-tailer Daraz

Chinese e-commerce platform Alibaba is reportedly considering acquiring a Pakistani fashion owned by German start-up company Rocket Internet, in a bid to gain a foothold in the South Asian country.

The companies are negotiating the price of Rocket Internet-owned retail platform Daraz, reported Bloomberg on Tuesday according to sources with knowledge of the matter. The talks are still at an early stage. An Alibaba spokesperson declined to comment on the report, and Rocket Internet did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Just last week, Alibaba’s Ant Financial bought a 45% stake in Telenor Microfinance Bank for $184.5m to further develop its mobile payment and digital finances.

In Pakistan, the retail and e-commerce industry is growing rapidly thanks to a growing youth population that can afford more and more. According to Daraz, there are 30 million active Internet users in Pakistan and e-commerce is becoming increasingly important for companies in this country.

Daraz is a leading online store for shoes and fashion in Bangladesh, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.