Alibaba’s Lazada appoints Chun Li as new CEO

Lazada, the Southeast Asian arm of Chinese e-commerce firm Alibaba Group Holding, said on Friday it would replace its chief executive officer, as it battles for dominance in the fast-growing market.
Lazada Group Chief Executive Officer and co-founder Pierre Poignant will be replaced by Chun Li, a former Alibaba executive, who is currently Lazada co-president and head of its Indonesia operations, the company said in a statement.
Reuters reported the move earlier on Friday, citing sources. Two people with knowledge of the matter said the reshuffle is due to the e-commerce firm’s middling performance.
Lazada has struggled to fend off rivals like the Singapore-headquartered SEA’s e-commerce arm Shopee, which is backed by Alibaba rival Tencent, for control of the fast-growing market of 650 million consumers.