SingPost invests in Hong Kong ventures

SingPost has revealed investments in two Hong Kong companies as it continues its aggregation of interests in eCommerce and logistics businesses in the broader Asian region.

SingPost subsidiary Quantium Solutions Holdings has spent HK$8 million (about $1.5 million) acquiring 1 million new shares in E Link Station, representing about 50 per cent of the business. Founded last May, E Link Station is creating “a rapidly expanding network of self-collection parcel service points”, a concept with similarities to SingPost’s POPStations across the island state.

“ELink… is an extension of how we approach parcel deliveries elsewhere in many parts of the world – that is, we give customers flexibility through multiple channels that include locker storage and redemption centres,” explained Dr Wolfgang Baier, group CEO of SingPost.

The second, larger deal sees SingPost take a 33 per cent stake in Morning Express & Logistics for HK$39.6 million (S$7.2 million). ME provides logistics, documents and parcel delivery services in Hong Kong. The Singaporean company has an option to take a further 33 per cent stake for the same amount if certain terms and conditions are fulfilled.

“Morning Express gives us a strong last-mile and parcels capability in Hong Kong and extends our eCommerce value chain there, adding on to our warehousing, freight forwarding and front-end eCommerce,” said Baier.

“As a company, Morning Express has 28 years in the logistics business and they are led by a professional management whose thinking is remarkably similar to ours.”

Baier said Hong Kong, as a gateway to China, is a priority market for SingPost and a node in its pan-Asian network through which it serves its customers and partners.

SingPost is 14.51 per cent owned by Chinese eCommerce giant Alibaba Group.