HANGZHOU, CHINA-- March 22, 2022 -- Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE: BABA and HKEX: 9988, the “Company”) today announced that the Company’s board has authorized to upsize its share repurchase program to US$25 billion from US$15 billion (the “Share Repurchase Program”), in a sign of confidence about the Company’s continued growth in the future. The Company also announced that Weijian Shan, executive chairman of investment group PAG, was appointed as an independent director to the Company’s board.

The Share Repurchase Program will be effective for a two-year period through March 2024. As of March 18, 2022, the Company had purchased a total of 56.2 million American depositary shares under the previously announced share repurchase program, for a total consideration of approximately US$9.2 billion.

Shan’s appointment as an independent director will be effective March 31, 2022, and he will serve on the board’s audit committee. Börje Ekholm, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Ericsson Group, will retire from the Company’s board on March 31, 2022. Ekholm has served as an independent director on the Company’s board since June 2015.

“We are truly grateful to Börje for his invaluable commitment and contributions to the Alibaba board over the past six years,” said Daniel Zhang, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Alibaba Group. “Weijian is a trusted leader in the global financial industry who has been an active facilitator for greater understanding between Asia and the rest of the world throughout his extraordinary career. I believe Alibaba will benefit greatly from his deep knowledge across different industries and global perspective.”

“I have been deeply impressed with the growth and achievements of Alibaba, and with how it has positively changed the lives of so many consumers and businesses in China and elsewhere. It served about 1 billion consumers in China and 300 million around the world in 2021 alone. I feel honored to be invited by the board to serve as an independent director. I look forward to contributing the little I know to help the Company achieve its long-term goals,” said Shan.

“Alibaba is an incredible company and I continue to believe in its future. I wish Daniel and the leadership team every success as it remains focused on creating long-term value for its stakeholders. I have decided to step down from the board to devote more time to Ericsson’s business,” said Ekholm.