JD.com to Acquire 50% of Hong Kong Office Tower for $450M

Dec. 11 — The major Chinese e-commerce company is significantly increasing its presence in Hong Kong this year, planning to invest HKD3.5 billion (USD 450 million) to acquire a 50% stake in an office building within the region.

The company’s investment division, Jasmine Investment Development, will purchase half of the China Construction Bank Tower from Lai Sun Group, a Hong Kong-based developer. The transaction was jointly announced on Dec. 9 by Lai Sun Garment International and Lai Sun Development, the publicly listed arms of Lai Sun Group. The deal is anticipated to close next month.

The China Construction Bank Tower, a 27-floor office complex situated in Hong Kong’s central business district, was jointly developed by Lai Sun Group and China Construction Bank and opened in 2014. The company will gain exclusive rights to occupy 12 floors, which include the entire first-floor lobby.

The company has expressed strong confidence in its growth prospects in Hong Kong. It plans to continue investing in its supply chain, aiming to integrate retail, logistics, technological research, and other business sectors in the city to better serve the local market.

Earlier this year, the company acquired Hong Kong-based supermarket chain Kai Bo Food Supermarket, taking over more than 90 stores in the city. Additionally, its logistics subsidiary opened an express distribution center in the Chai Wan district in March, marking its fifth such facility in Hong Kong.

The expansion into Hong Kong is partly driven by the saturation of e-commerce user growth in mainland China, prompting the company to explore new markets, according to Zhang Yi, CEO of iiMedia Research. The company also sees Hong Kong as a strategic stepping stone for expansion into Southeast Asia and other international markets.

The company’s global expansion efforts have accelerated in recent months. In July, it announced plans to acquire and privatize a major German retail conglomerate, Ceconomy, which operates electronics outlets MediaMarkt and Saturn, in a deal valued at EUR 2.2 billion (USD 2.6 billion)—a record acquisition by a Chinese e-commerce firm in Europe.

According to updates from Ceconomy earlier this month, the company has secured a 60% stake in Ceconomy through the privatization process, with the expected completion date set for the first half of next year.