Zee Media Bureau
New Delhi: Chinese online giant Alibaba Group is set for a record IPO debut on Friday at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) where is it expected to raise about USD 25 billion through the sale of shares.
Though the price of the shares will be out late Thursday, US regulators suggest the price range for the stock offering between $66-$68 per share, a price that could break the record for stock flotations set by China`s AgBank in 2010.
Earlier this month, the price was said to have been fixed between $60-$66 per share but was raised following the intense interest in the online retailer's popularity and speculations surrounding it.
The new price range also means that Alibaba Group would have a market value of $163-$168 billion.
However, despite the hype surrounding Alibaba's IPO debut, analysts say it is yet to be seen if the initial public offering of the Chinese online giant will propel it to challenge the dominant technology firms like Amazon, Google and eBay.
And in an interesting move, the Chinese online retail giant is reportedly in talks with Snapdeal to enter the Indian online market.
Snapdeal, India's leading online retailer is also said to be attracting attention from Japan`s largest e-commerce company Rakuten Inc and telecommunications firm SoftBank Corp.
