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Bad debt for sale, along with toys, games, electronics on China's Taobao

Two separate items of bad debt were purchased by individuals on a popular online website known for consumer commerce in China.

By Elizabeth Shim
Alibaba trading at the New York Stock Exchange in September. The Chinese e-commerce giant's consumer platform, Taobao, has sold distressed loans from China's state banks. File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI
Alibaba trading at the New York Stock Exchange in September. The Chinese e-commerce giant's consumer platform, Taobao, has sold distressed loans from China's state banks. File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo

SHANGHAI, March 26 (UPI) -- China's e-commerce retailer Taobao has added bad debt from state-run banks to its platform of retail merchandise that ranges from clothing to household electronics.

Two distressed loans on offer were already sold, reported The Wall Street Journal. One debt from a cleaning supplies firm sold for $710,000 and another from a steel mill was carted away at $3.2 million.

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China Cinda Asset Management, a state-owned bank, placed the loans online. A representative at the bank told The Financial Times the bank was "inspired" by the sale of illegitimate assets that is following China's anti-corruption crackdown.

In the course of its national anti-corruption drive, China's courts have used Taobao to sell ill-gotten assets from Chinese officials that range from apartments, luxury cars and expensive wine. The new bidding platform was launched in November.

The purchasers of the two distressed loans were individuals, according to Li Xiaoguang, a Taobao manager who coordinated the Cinda sale. The website provided photos of factory buildings and documents on the collateral properties, as is typically the case with other merchandise.

Since its founding in 2003, Taobao's auction platform has diversified its offerings to include real estate, forest assets, intellectual property and intangible assets.

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In 2015, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., the parent company of Taobao, sank nearly 20 percent in 2015, reported Barron's.

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