Alibaba Automotive in partnership with Ant Micro Loan is offering car loans via mobile apps and online marketplaces such as Taobao and Tmall. (Photo : www.blogs.ubc.ca)
Alibaba Automotive, a vehicle service arm of e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding, is offering car loans to users through mobile apps following its partnership with its lending affiliate Ant Micro Loan and several automobile manufacturers, the company announced on Tuesday, July 21.
According to a press release sent by Alibaba to the Global Times, car loan applicants can process their loan and get a decision in half an hour and without the need to provide complicated documents.
The company added that the maximum amount that can be loaned is 200,000 yuan ($32,258), while the average line of credit is expected to be about 70,000 yuan.
The company said that users can accomplish the entire procedure using Alibaba's mobile apps such as Taobao and Tmall. After choosing a car via an app, Ant Micro Loan will evaluate the user's or applicant's credit line based on their online shopping activity.
"The cooperation between car companies and e-commerce firms opens a new era that will change the way people buy vehicles. That's in line with the online-to-offline commerce model," Wang Licheng, the general manager of Alibaba Automotive, was quoted as saying.
"Our new service is expected to boost the country's sluggish car market," Wang noted.
Alibaba Automotive, founded in April, is working with 50 established automakers, including BMW, Jaguar Land Rover, Cadillac and Volkswagen, to sell cars online, as part of a move to integrate the traditional automobile industry with the Internet.
In 2014, the company's car sales reached about 40 billion yuan via its online marketplaces (taobao.com, tmall.com), Alibaba said in its press release.
