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Bloomberg
EBay Inc., operator of the namesake online marketplace, is close to a deal for the Japanese assets of e-commerce site Qoo10, a person familiar with the matter said.
The San Jose, California-based company is buying the assets from its joint-venture partner Giosis Pte, the person said, asking not to be identified as the details are private. Under the proposed $700 million deal, EBay would give up its stake in Giosis, the person said.
Japan is the biggest market for Qoo10, and part of an e-commerce business that also operates in Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia. The company is backed by investors including Singapore Press Holdings Ltd., Saban Capital Group and Oak Investment Partners. A deal in Japan would bolster EBay’s position in Northeast Asia. The company bought South Korean online retailer Gmarket Inc. for $1.2 billion in 2009.
Representatives at Qoo10 and Giosis didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment. A representative for EBay declined to comment.
Japanese e-commerce provider Rakuten Inc. and Yahoo Japan Corp., which operates some retail sites, both fell 0.8 percent, while Japan stocks rose more than 1 percent. Start Today Co., another e-commerce player in Japan, fell as much as 4.8 percent, the most in three weeks.