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STORY: Alibaba is breaking up.

The Chinese retail and technology titan said Tuesday (March 28) that it would divide into six units.

Each one will cover a key business line, such as e-commerce, cloud computing and digital media.

The units will each get their own CEO and board of directors.

They are also expected to explore fundraising options, with initial public offerings a possibility.

Alibaba Group will become a holding company overseeing it all.

Current boss Daniel Zhang will stay on as chairman and chief executive of the Group.

He said the move would make Alibaba more agile, and implied that there could be job cuts involved.

U.S.-listed shares in the firm jumped 8% following the news.

It’s the biggest revamp in the firm’s 24-year history, and comes as China vows to ease a sweeping crackdown on its big firms.

Watchdogs now want to spur private-sector growth amid concern over the country’s economic outlook.

It also comes a day after Alibaba founder Jack Ma reappeared in China following a year abroad.

He resurfaced at a school he founded in the company’s hometown of Hangzhou.

Ma had largely disappeared from public view since late 2020 after making comments critical of regulators, which some said had angered Beijing authorities.