(MENAFN- Gulf Times) A powerful Chinese regulator yesterday blasted e-commerce giant Alibaba for allowing "illegal" actions on its multi-billion-dollar online shopping platform, accusing executives of narcissism in an unusual government dressing down of a major domestic company.
The State Administration for Industry & Commerce (SAIC), charged with maintaining market order in China, said in an official report that Alibaba's platforms had hosted "long-standing" violations of online business laws and regulations.
It took aim at Taobao, Alibaba's consumer-to-consumer platform which is estimated to hold more than 90% of the Chinese market, and Tmall.com, believed to command over half the market in China for business-to-consumer transactions.
"Alibaba has not paid enough attention to illegal operations on its online trading platforms or taken effective measures to tackle them... placing itself in the biggest credibility crisis since its establishment," the SAIC said.
The SAIC has become known for its crackdowns on foreign companies accused of violating China's anti-monopoly law. But its public dressing-down of such a prominent Chinese firm is unprecedented.
The regulator accused Alibaba of poor oversight of its employees as well as merchants and products on its platforms, disorganised sales management and a flawed rating system for users.
Business magazine Caixin described the SAIC document as a "bombshell aimed at Alibaba".
Alibaba, founded by Jack Ma in 1999, is China's biggest e-commerce company. It listed on the New York Stock Exchange last year in the world's largest public offering to date, which made Ma China's richest person.
The regulator revealed for the first time that SAIC gave Alibaba what it called "administrative guidance", a form of official censure, in July last year ahead of the IPO.
People ride a double bicycle past a logo of the Alibaba at the company's headquarters in Zhejiang province. A Chinese regulator yesterday said Alibaba's platforms had hosted 'long-standing' violations of online business laws and regulations.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.