Alibaba merges food delivery units Ele.me and Koubei

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group merges its food delivery service Ele.me with food and lifestyle unit Koubei on Oct 12.

The new “local service company” comprising Ele.me and Koubei is established amid intensifying competition with rival Meituan-Dianping.

The two units currently operate in a total of 676 cities with 3.5 million merchants signed up. The combined unit will be headed by Ele.me chief executive Wang. Koubei’s head Fan Chi will report to Wang and continue to lead the Koubei business.

The new company, which does not yet have an official English name, will leverage Alibaba’s capabilities in new retail, membership systems, marketing, logistics, finance and other areas that centre on urban living.

Source: SCMP