Alibaba Cloud to guide SMEs on doing business in China

Chinese cloud giant Alibaba Cloud has launched a global programme in Singapore to guide small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the city-state that are looking to expand their business into China.

Called the China Gateway Programme, the initiative, rolled out in collaboration with DBS Bank, a slew of government agencies as well as industry associations, is part of Alibaba Cloud’s efforts to court overseas businesses as it expands its global footprint.

By tapping Alibaba’s technological knowhow and experience that has enabled it to become a global e-commerce and technology giant, Singapore SMEs will be able to capture and capitalise on growth opportunities in Asia and China.

But more than just supplying SME participants with cloud computing services, Alibaba Cloud will provide firms of all sizes with an in-depth immersion programme on doing business in China, connecting them to Chinese companies and consumers via the Alibaba ecosystem.

Global enterprises that have benefited from the China Gateway Programme so far include Japanese cosmetics giant Shiseido, American automaker Ford and Italian cruise operator Costa Cruises.

“As the largest public cloud provider in Asia-Pacific, and our role as the data intelligence backbone of all business units in the Alibaba ecosystem from e-commerce to payments, logistics and supply chain management, we have the proven expertise and experience to help businesses grow,” said Selina Yuen, president of Alibaba Cloud Intelligence International.

“With the support of our partners here, we are confident of supporting local businesses of all sizes and from all backgrounds to grow beyond Singapore, especially into China’s market,” she added.

Alibaba Cloud was recently named first in the Asia-Pacific market share for IaaS (infrastructure-as-a-service) and IUS (infrastructure utility services) in two consecutive years by analyst firm Gartner in its latest report on the region’s IT services market.

The Chinese cloud supplier has been aggressively expanding its footprint across the region, starting with its international headquarters in Singapore that it opened in 2015.

It currently operates 15 availability zones in the region outside China, including Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, Malaysia, Indonesia, India and Japan. The company set up its second datacentre in Jakarta this year.