SEOUL, Jan. 26 (Yonhap) -- South Korean retail giant Shinsegae Inc. said Friday it has signed an initial agreement with a foreign investment firm and a private equity firm to strengthen its e-commerce business amid a rapid expansion of the country's online market.
Shinsegae said it will hive off the online business divisions of Shinsegae Department Store and its discount store chain operator E-Mart Inc. and establish a separate affiliate dedicated to the group's e-commerce business. The new unit is set to be launched within this year.
The retail giant said it has signed a memorandum of understanding with BRV Capital Management, a consumer focused investment firm, and private equity firm Affinity Equity Partners to attract over 1 trillion won (US$938 million) for its new e-commerce unit.
Shinsegae aims to raise the new firm as the business group's key distribution channel with an annual revenue of 10 trillion won by 2023.
Shinsegae's e-commerce business has been posting double-digit growth since the launch of an integrated online mall for its subsidiaries, SSG.COM, in 2014, it said.
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