Alibaba debuts protection service for Korean sellers' global outreach
Called Trade Assurance, the company's order protection program offers an escrow-based secure payment system for cross-border deals, addressing transaction uncertainties that may arise from product or shipping issues.
The service oversees the entire transaction process on the platform, spanning payment to delivery, with more features available in logistics and financing, the company explained.
'Korea plays a pivotal role in the global trade network and is one of the key markets that Alibaba.com continues to focus on,' said Shawn Yang, general manager of Global Business Development at Alibaba.com, in a press conference Monday.
He noted that the global Korean culture boom has heightened the popularity of made-in-Korea products on Alibaba.com among buyers worldwide. The B2B marketplace provides global trade services for buyers and sellers in over 200 countries and regions worldwide.
Summer Gao, head of global supply chain at Alibaba.com, identified lack of trust as the biggest barrier to global trade for Korean small and medium-sized enterprises.
In this light, she explained that Trade Assurance boosts sellers' credibility with global buyers by showing their transaction history and reliability, while also improving efficiency and addressing data limitations.
'Trade Assurance helps lower purchasing barriers for global buyers, thereby enhancing the competitiveness of Korean sellers,' she said.
Alibaba.com has been heavily invested in the Korean market, as demonstrated by the launch of its South Korea Pavilion last July, an exclusive online platform for Korean sellers, and the opening of its Korean office in Busan last month.
"The exposure of Korean products on the Alibaba.com platform has increased by approximately 50 percent compared to the previous year," Yang said.
Asked about Chinese sellers entering the Korean market, Yang said that unlike other business-to-consumer platforms that target Korean customers, Alibaba.com focuses on supporting Korean sellers by creating "global sales channels" for them.
Alibaba.com also said it will continue to scale up its support programs to actively promote stable global growth for Korean sellers, while partnering with various local logistics providers to deliver better services in the years ahead.
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