Alibaba’s Hong Kong-based corporate venturing fund will be the cornerstone investor in a vehicle focusing on startups connected to the GBA ecosystem.

China-headquartered e-commerce group Alibaba’s Hong Kong Entrepreneurs Fund (AEF) is anchoring a HK$2bn ($258m) vehicle dubbed AEF Greater Bay Area (GBA) Fund.

GBA Fund counts undisclosed conglomerates, financial institutions and family offices among its limited partners, and is scheduled to reach its final close in the first half of 2022.

The fund will target developers of technologies in areas including deeptech and sustainability, healthcare, artificial intelligence and industry 4.0 technology. It is being managed by venture capital firm Gobi Partners.

Edison Fu

Edison Fu is a reporter and Asia liaison at Global Corporate Venturing.