Daraz was founded in Pakistan in 2012 has since grown into the most popular online shopping destination in the country. It currently operates online marketplaces in Bangladesh, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Nepal. The five South Asian markets where Daraz is operating have a combined population of over 460 million, 60% of which are under the age of 35. Daraz will continue to operate under the same brand following the transaction. “The sale of Daraz to Alibaba is another testament to Rocket Internet´s ability to successfully scale and exit market-leading companies”, says Oliver Samwer, CEO of Rocket Internet, stated a press release. “Leading technology and a strong logistics network have helped creating one of the fastest growing companies in the region. The acquisition by Alibaba is a tremendous success for the entire team working at Daraz,” added Samwer. According to Bloomberg, the deal comes months after Ant Financial, which is controlled by Ma, decided to buy a 45 percent stake in Telenor Microfinance Bank for $184.5 million to further develop mobile payments and digital financial services.