Japan’s Rakuten Acquires Brazilian E-commerce Provider

Rakuten said in a statement it acquired a 75 per cent stake in Ikeda, which provides major Brazilian retailers with e-commerce platforms. It did not disclose the investment amount.

“Together, we will share our expertise, and create a unique and powerful approach for merchants to not only take advantage of the exciting ecommerce market in Brazil, but also to expand their reach worldwide,” Rakuten founder and chief executive Hiroshi Mikitani said.

Rakuten is Japan’s biggest player in Internet retailing, but Mikitani has made it a priority to expand Rakuten’s business worldwide. Like other Japanese companies, Rakuten faces an aging, shrinking population at home that is pushing corporate executives to seek growth abroad.

It accelerated its global drive last year, buying U.S. online retailer Buy.com in May 2010 and French Internet PriceMinister S.A. in June. Rakuten also formed joint ventures with Chinese search engine operator Baidu Inc. and PT Global Mediacom in Indonesia.

E-commerce in Brazil is projected to grow 18 per cent annually, with total sales hitting $22-billion (U.S.) by 2016, Rakuten said.

Ikeda is based in the Brazilian capital of Sao Paulo and manages e-commerce services for brands including Ri Happy, Le Postiche and Whirlpool Brazil.

In trading Tuesday, Rakuten shares jumped more than 4 per cent to 84,500 yen on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, outpacing the benchmark Nikkei 225 index’s 0.7 per cent gain.

Rakuten announced the deal after financial markets closed.