Alibaba Anoints New Chief in Revamp of Stalling Commerce Arm

  • International chief Jiang will oversee entire commerce unit
  • Jiang will become one of the company’s most powerful execs
Jiang FanPhotographer: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg
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Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. has appointed a veteran executive the overseer of its entire online e-commerce operation, setting in motion a major overhaul of a vast but struggling business.

Jiang Fan, who currently runs the rapidly expanding overseas retail division, will take over a newly created department that groups all Alibaba’s online shopping assets from Taobao and Tmall in China to Lazada in Southeast Asia. Jiang, who was demoted just a few years ago in part because of an online scandal, effectively becomes the most powerful person in the company after Chief Executive Officer Eddie Wu and Chairman Joseph Tsai.