‘We want to upgrade ties with Thailand’

[webfact]

‘We want to upgrade ties with Thailand’

By SUTHICHAI YOON 
THE NATION

 

Jack Ma, the founder and Executive Chairman of Alibaba Group, and The Nation co-founder Suthichai Yoon, show the Thai way of greeting with a ‘wai’ during the latter’s visit to Alibaba Group’s headquarters in Hangzhou last week.

 

We need speed, we need execution, we need results, says Alibaba founder Jack ma as he looks to expand relationships.

ALIBABA GROUP founder Jack Ma has urged Thailand to “move much faster” to implement digital projects.

 

In an exclusive interview with The Nation in his office at Alibaba Group’s headquarters in Hangzhou last week, he said he plans to visit Thailand later this year to “upgrade our partnership” in all major digital fields covering e-commerce, logistics, finance, payments and travel.

 

“I am heading a big delegation, including our CEO and our teams including Alipay, logistics, e-commerce, and cloud computing – the whole package from Alibaba Group,” he said.

 

Ma, who is also executive chairman of the group, said that compared to Malaysia, Thailand is moving slowly in implementing digital projects and had to “move much faster”.

 

“Honestly, we were shocked by Malaysia’s speed,” said Ma.

 

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak surprised him after a visit to Alibaba Group headquarters with his “very quick action” in making that country the first e-WTP (World Trade Platform) hub in the region, he said.

 

“The prime minister said, ‘In three months, we will make this thing happen’,” Ma recalled. “We thought it was almost impossible to make that happen in three months. It was a huge project, but they made it on time. They set up a great, strong team to follow up on the project. They opened up a customs office, inspection offices and made available the land that was required.

 

“So, I think Thailand should move more speedily. This is something we expect. But we understand, of course, that the process was probably disrupted by the passing away of His Majesty the King.”

 

Looking ahead, he said: “When we go to Thailand this time, we will discuss that because in a business like ours, we need speed, we need execution and we need results. I believe Thailand can do that, too, because you have great talents and you have a government that can move quickly. So, this time, when we can agree on the projects, we will move ahead and get things done.”

 

Based on the initial agreements signed on his first trip to Thailand last year, Ma said he would expand business relationships with Thailand with an eye to using it as a springboard to neighbouring countries.

 

“I still remember the very warm welcome we received from Prime Minister Prayut (Chan-o-cha) and all the Cabinet members concerned during my last visit – and also the engagement I had with the young people there.”

 

He says he wants to help Thailand in its goal to be an entry-point for accessing nearby nations. “What I would like to do is to work out how to help Thailand to be better connected with other Southeast Asian markets and to be more connected with the China market … in the five major areas: global buy, global sale, global delivery, global financing and global travel.”

 

Alibaba Group can help SMEs and young people succeed in the five areas and that would enable Thailand to connect with other countries, especially China. Thailand, he said, is one of the few countries in Southeast Asia that has the five functions in place.

 

“So, we pay very special attention to Thailand. Our research team is still working hard on how to help Thailand function in better ways,” he said.

 

“My CEO (Daniel Zhang) and I have been thinking about how to help Thailand become more globalised. So many Chinese travel to Thailand. They love Thailand, the Thai food and the Thai people.”

 

The Alibaba founder said Thailand could benefit from selling to the 300 million middle-class Chinese with growing purchasing power.

 

“My wife likes Thai durian a lot. I believe China should import more fresh fruits and vegetables from Thailand and other countries in the region,” he said.

 

In addition to Malaysia, he cited Pakistan, the Philippines, Vietnam and Cambodia as Asian countries on his group’s special attention list to become e-WTP centres.

 

He said that his plan to turn China into a cashless society in five years will help change the face of the digital payments system in the near future. 

 

“With the new digital money system, Chinese tourists going to Thailand will not have to bring cash,” he said. “You could go to any bar, any restaurant, any shop and just use our mobile payments service,” he said, adding that in the future you may not even need to carry a passport. 

 

Ma confirmed that Lazada, a regional e-commerce company in which the Alibaba Group now holds about 83 per cent equity, has drawn up a proposal to set up a major e-commerce park in Thailand’s Eastern Economic Corridor.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/business/30320999

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2017-07-18

[jaywalker]

Just now, webfact said:

ALIBABA GROUP founder Jack Ma has urged Thailand to “move much faster” to implement digital projects.

Good luck with that.

 

Had to get my neighbor's wife to drop a few hundred baht to the internet "Installation" guys in Pattaya a while back.

 

Otherwise it was going to take them 3 weeks to bring out a modem & plug it in.

 

300 baht later....it was installed the next day. They're worse than the cops!

 

Got it from AIS.....Pattaya TOTALLY festooned w/ BBB internet  posters & a giant, honking phone number to call.

 

I called...and called.... and called. No answer.

[Cadbury]

40 minutes ago, webfact said:

".....he said he plans to visit Thailand later this year to “upgrade our partnership”

Jack had better make sure he has 20,000 baht in his hip pocket to show immigration otherwise he might be refused entry. Not to mention hotel booking details and copy of return air ticket.

[yellowboat]

Thailand is nothing like Malaysia.  Malaysia is far more erudite and English is common.  Most things technical are written in English.

[ukrules]

Of course he won't be allowed to own a controlling percentage of any company formed over here.

 

Either Thailand is turning out high end computer guys by the 1000 or they're going to need foreigners and this is where the problems will start.

 

There is a distinct lack of Ebay, Amazon marketplace type sites in Thailand....why is that ?

[Dobredin Ghusputin]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

I think Thailand should move more speedily.

 

Speed with projects, it's all relative. As in who you're related to.

 

[Samui Bodoh]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

I believe Thailand can do that, too, because you have great talents and you have a government that can move quickly. So, this time, when we can agree on the projects, we will move ahead and get things done.”

 

Er... ahem... have you actually been to Thailand?

[Ruffian Dick]

55 minutes ago, yellowboat said:

Thailand is nothing like Malaysia.  Malaysia is far more erudite and English is common.  Most things technical are written in English.

They're not a former colony are they?

[klauskunkel]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

we need speed, we need execution and we need results

ah, same things Thailand needs

[lvr181]

5 hours ago, yellowboat said:

Thailand is nothing like Malaysia.  Malaysia is far more erudite and English is common.  Most things technical are written in English.

People can say what they like about tourism in Malaysia, but in just about anything else Malaysia is centuries ahead of Thailand. While 'feudalism' remains in Thailand they will continue to languish economically in south east Asia while other nations pass them by (if they have not already done so). 

[esprit]

So does North Korea

[the guest]

Of course they do, so they can control the people even more. China is at best a T-Shirt, and a horrible regime.

[madusa]

China may be able to achieve many of its targets but at what price? The whole village polluted by chemicals people died from cancers caused by chemicals.

China may end up like Japan, in Japan all they need to build have been built(mostly) now the economy slows down. Young people commit suicide in large number because they didn't see anything worth living for. Probably the highest suicide rate in Asia alone.

The difficulty is really to achieve a moderation in our lifestyle . Young people in China is badly misled by consumerism. A must have brand of certain luxury goods especially for ladies made them look stupid not beautiful, STUPID.

Thailand doesn't have to follow China on its path of self destruction.

 

 

[mikecha]

Lazada  will be pleased

[champers]

Can we expect to be overwhelmed by Alibaba advertising on this site?

[trainman34014]

''Move much faster'' only applies to driving by Thais.  In all else worthwhile they only have a one speed gearbox !

[lvr181]

1 hour ago, trainman34014 said:

''Move much faster'' only applies to driving by Thais.  In all else worthwhile they only have a one speed gearbox !

And no brakes!