Is Alibaba banned in India after the Government's ban on Chinese apps?

The Government of India has recently imposed a ban on as many as 59 Chinese apps in the wake of rising Indo-China border tension in Ladakh, citing threat to the country’s security and user privacy. TikTok, ShareIt, WeChat and UC Browser are amongst the most popular apps in the country that made it to the ban list, however, many Indian users were left wondering if the ban also affects the influential technology company, Alibaba.

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Is Alibaba Chinese?

Alibaba is a Chinese tech giant which is widely recognised as the world's leading wholesale mobile marketplace for global trade. The online platform allows users to purchase a wide range of products from suppliers around the globe. Buyers on the Alibaba.com app can follow their favourite suppliers to stay up to date on new products and promotions.

The Alibaba Group primarily operates in India and has made some huge investments in the country. The tech giant has backed Indian unicorns such as Bigbasket, Paytm, and Zomato.

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Alibaba owner

Alibaba was founded by famed entrepreneur Jack Ma on April 4, 1999. He is currently the second richest person in China. According to Forbes, Jack Ma has a net worth that stands at an estimated $43.2 billion, as of 2020.

Is Alibaba banned in India?

Alibaba is one of the apps to able to evade India's digital strike against Chinese mobile applications. However, the ban involves the inclusion of UC Browser, an app developed by the Alibaba-backed mobile internet company called UCWeb.

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Alibaba’s B2B platform started its operations in India in 2008, and currently has millions of buyers and sellers registered on the platform across the country. As per company analyses, India holds the second spot in the top 20 buyer distribution list and ranks at number one position in the top 10 global seller distribution.

The move to ban these Chinese apps came after multiple complaints of stealing of user data, which were getting transferred to servers located outside of India. The decision to block these Chinese-linked mobile apps doesn't come as a surprise as there have already been speculations surrounding regulatory action from the government.

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Image credits: Alibaba