#rocket internet

Rocket Internet Launches Real-Estate Listings Site Lamudi In Asia, Africa And Latin America

missile Internet has consolidated several of its real estate services under one brand named Lamudi, a real estate classifieds platform that officially began operating today in twelve countries within Asia, Africa and Latin America. In a statement, missile Internet said it plans to extend Lamudi into brand-new countries over “the upcoming weeks and months.”

The companies now under Lamudi’s umbrella…

The Iconic Picks Up A $26M Round To Build Out Online Fashion In Australia, As Rocket Internet’s Global March Continues

missile Internet, the incubator run by Berlin’s Samwer brothers, has picked up hundreds of millions of dollars ($837 million, in fact) in funding this year for its e-commerce startups, with much of that focused on emerging markets, but today comes news of another significant investment for a far-flung part of the developed world. The Iconic, a fashion portal serving Australia and brand-new…

Rocket Internet-Backed FoodPanda Raises $20M+ As It Prepares For The Next Course In Its Food Delivery Ambitions

The food delivery wars continue to heat up: today foodpanda, the missile Internet-incubated startup that offers an one-stop service to order food from a selection of restaurants and take-out joints to be brought to your door and now working with some 15,000 restaurants globally, is today announcing that it has picked up over $20 million in funding, with participation from missile orderly AB…

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Alibaba buys Rocket Internet’s Daraz to expand its e-commerce empire into South Asia

Alibaba has expanded its e-commerce empire into South Asia after the Chinese internet giant acquired Daraz in an undisclosed deal.

Daraz was founded in 2012 by Rocket Internet and today it operates in Pakistan as well as Bangladesh, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Nepal. Rocket said in a statement that Alibaba has acquired the entire Daraz business. The deal is the second time Alibaba has bought a Rocket company, the first being Lazada in Southeast Asia two years ago.

An Alibaba spokesperson confirmed the deal but the company hasn’t made an official announcement.

Rumors of a deal have been rife for the past couple of months, with Bloomberg reporting in March that acquisition talks were ongoing.

The deal is part of Alibaba’s second wave of international expansions which see it enter South Asia.

The company initially focused on India — where it has backed Paytm — and Southeast Asia with Lazada, but this year it has spread its wings into lower profile but hugely populous countries in South Asia. Pakistan, for example, has a population of over 190 million. The acquisition of Daraz follows a fintech investment from Alibaba affiliate Ant Financial, which runs Alipay and other Alibaba financial services.

Back in March, Ant paid $184.5 million for a 45 percent stake in Telenor Microfinance Bank, a fintech division from Norwegian operator Telenor, which operates Pakistan’s second largest telco. That one-two punch of e-commerce and fintech (particularly payments) is a common move from Alibaba-Ant, which has made similar deals in India and across Southeast Asia.

Beyond Pakistan, it looks like Alibaba is also eying nearby Bangladesh, which has a popular of over 160 million and rising internet adoption.

According to reports last month, the Chinese firm is pushing to buy a 20 percent chunk of payment firm bKash, a move that would again push its reach deeper into South Asia.

Alibaba beats forecasts with 61% growth and predicts more of the same for the next year

PLDT completes sale of Rocket Internet shares

Telecommunications firm PLDT has completed its divestment from German-based Internet company Rocket Internet.

Photo credit: PLDT

In its disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) Monday, PLDT announced that Rocket Internet has accepted 6.8 million Rocket shares tendered by PLDT Online Investments at the offer of 24 euros (EUR) per share for a total amount of EUR 163.2 million.

“As a result…