Yahoo said that rather than divest its financial interests in Alibaba, the company will separate Yahoo from Alibaba in a reverse spinoff.
The company’s board has been contemplating its future and decided that selling the core Yahoo internet business is the best path forward.
“The ultimate separation of our Alibaba stake will be important to our continued business transformation,” said Marissa Mayer, CEO of Yahoo. “We will tighten our focus and prioritize investments to drive profitability and long-term growth. A separation from our Alibaba stake, via the reverse spin, will provide more transparency into the value of Yahoo’s business.”
The reverse spinoff would see Yahoo forming a new company around the sale of its core Yahoo-branded properties which include Tumblr and Flickr. Yahoo has been exploring a separation between its Yahoo and Alibaba businesses for some time.
