Alibaba plans to invest more than $1 billion in a data centre close to the Turkish capital of Ankara and a logistics hub at Istanbul Airport, according to media reports.
Turkey’s Daily Sabah newspaper said the Chinese e-commerce giant plans to invest more than $1 billion in Turkey, quoting a statement by its president Michael Evans.
“We have a serious investment plan at Istanbul Airport. We can evaluate e-export plans from here to Europe, the Middle East and the Far East. We plan an investment of more than $1 billion,” Mr Evans said.
The company plans to establish a logistics base at Istanbul Airport and build Turkey’s largest data centre, measuring 200 thousand square metres, in Temelli.
Trendyol, one of Turkey’s best known e-commerce platforms, is backed by Alibaba.
“The reason we chose Trendyol was that its technology was advanced and its potential was great. We are positioning this place as a base for Europe and the Middle East,” Mr Evans said.
He did not rule out a stock market plan in Turkey with Trendyol.
“Going public has both advantages and disadvantages. I think it is advantageous to be a public company…If they [Trendyol] want to go public, we will support them, as Trendyol grows,” Mr Evans told the Daily Sabah.
