VENTURE CAPITAL POST

Facebook may soon be your go-to app for shopping. The company disclosed Monday that it was testing new features that would enable users to buy products, without having to leave the app.

ProSiebenSat.1, a Munich-based German broadcaster, has acquired Swedish online travel agency Etraveli Holding AB for Euro235million ($267mn) from private equity (PE) firm Segulah IV LP. The acquisition deal for ProSiebenSat.1 is its biggest investment in the global e-Commerce. The German broadcaster will expand its digital operations globally following the acquisition. ProSiebenSat.1 is planning to expand beyond TV business.

There's good news in a form of startups for China, which is reeling under the pressure of the slowdown in the economy. Giving much breath to China, over 10,000 startup firms are to take off every day. The majority are small enterprises.

Chinese e-Commerce major Alibaba Group Holding's stock (NYSE: BABA) continued to ease on Wall Street for the fourth consecutive month following the reduction in revenue forecast for the next quarter of the year. Alibaba shares fell 13 percent in September and this continuous skid since May brought down the market value to $75billion. The economy sluggishness is impacting the e-commerce sales. Of late, Alibaba Group is facing cut-throat competition in online sales. Analysts hold the view that lot of uncertainty in store for Alibaba Group in the days to come.

China e-commerce industry is worth $2.1 trillion in 2014 with the number of users growing by 31.4 percent as reported by China E-Commerce Research Center (CERC). Out of the total amount, $450 billion comes from the online retail business alone. Current market players in the e-commerce are Alibaba, JD.com, and Suning Commerce.

There are a lot going on in the credit card industry, from credit card and gas related theft and fraud to online shopping without credit cards. Forbes reports on each of this credit card news. First, there is a fast spreading epidemic in the credit-card and gas-station industries where thieves are pumping gas illegally for profit. Meanwhile, a new Swedish checkout service allows people to shop online without using credit cards.

E-commerce startup Jet.com which was launched on July 31 had raised $225M only by this month. The new company was valued $600M and is now competing with Amazon.com.

Target stores are getting more foot traffic and shoppers are spending more in each trip, raising the company's annual profit outlook and increasing its second-quarter net income three folds, announced the discount-store chain Wednesday.

Millions of retailers in India are starting to get the hang of selling products online, and the platforms where they offer their products are giving them free training on how to properly prepare and sell their products. Free "universities" are becoming a fast growing trend among India's top online retailers.

Amazon.com Inc. has surpassed Wal-Mart Stores Inc. in market value. This comes after the online retailer reported revenues and profits exceeding Wall Street expectations for the second quarter ending June 30.

China will increase support for cross-border e-commerce as the world's second-largest economy shifts from manufacturing to higher-value services, the government said.

Internet retailer Amazon.com Inc.'s (AMZN.O) main German operating unit paid just 11.9 million euros ($16 million) in tax in 2014, despite the group recording $11.9 billion in sales to German customers last year, regulatory filings show.

Indian e-commerce firms are offering funding help and tech support to woo small retailers, emulating a strategy used by Chinese online retail giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd to expand into the towns and villages home to the majority of consumers.

JD.com Inc, China's No. 2 e-commerce player, on Wednesday launched its JD Worldwide cross-border online shopping platform, a challenger to Alibaba Group Holding Ltd's Tmall Global service.

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (BABA.N) and its finance affiliate accelerated a drive to be a full-fledged Chinese online financial network, with the launch on Thursday of an e-commerce tracking stock index and plans for a June start of an internet bank.