Alibaba eyes $145 mn investment in Korean fashion app ABLY

[Courtesy of ABLY]

South Korean style commerce platform ABLY, which is aiming to attract global investments totaling around 200 billion won ($145 million), recently received from Alibaba, the parent company of the Chinese e-commerce platform AliExpress, for an investment of around 100 billion won.

According to industry sources on Monday, ABLY is currently in discussions for investments with various entities including the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan (OTPP) from Canada, global investment firm Permira, and Alibaba. ABLY is reportedly valued at 2 trillion won by investors and if the investment agreement goes through, Alibaba is expected to secure a stake of around 5 percent in ABLY, the Chinese company’s first investment in the Korean e-commerce sector.

Although there are concerns about customer data sharing requests by Alibaba as part of the investment conditions, ABLY vehemently denied these criticisms. Alibaba has previously invested in major fintech and entertainment companies in Korea including KakaoPay, Toss Payments, and SM Entertainment.

Founded in 2018 by Kang Seok-hoon, a co-founder of online video service Watcha, ABLY has grown based on Seoul’s Dongdaemun SOHO fashion mall. It hit 259.5 billion won in revenue in 2023, the highest figure in its history, alongside an operating profit of 3.3 billion won, its first annual profit since its founding.

According to data from the mobile app analytics service Wiseapp Retail Goods, ABLY recorded a monthly active user (MAU) of 8.05 million last month, ranking it among the top fashion vertical platforms. In February, it recorded an MAU of 8.12 million, with a cumulative membership of 12 million.

“As the only style commerce platform to be profitable in 2023, we are actively being pursued by a number of investors,” an ABLY official said. “We are carefully considering attracting investments in a direction that can contribute to the revitalization of the Dongdaemun fashion ecosystem via K-sellers expanding overseas. We will actively support Korean sellers with excellent product capabilities in exploring overseas markets.”