JD.com Names New President as Founder Takes Step Back

Chinese eCommerce company JD.com on Monday (Sept. 6) announced Lei Xu as President of JD.com, taking over the company’s day-to-day operations from founder Richard Qiangdong Liu.

Xu was formerly the CEO of JD Retail. Liu will remain chairman and CEO but will “devote more time to formulating the company’s long-term strategies, mentoring younger management, and contributing to the revitalization of rural areas,” according to the company announcement.

Xu will lead the day-to-day operation and collaborative development of various business units of JD.com. He has been with the company since 2009 and was CEO of JD Retail since July 2018. Since joining JD.com, Xu has held several leadership roles within the sales and marketing divisions of JD Retail, including head of marketing and branding, head of JD Wireless, and head of platform operations.

Lijun Xin will take over as CEO of JD Retail and Enlin Jin will become CEO of JD Health International Inc., effective immediately.

Xin joined JD.com in October 2012 and, prior to this promotion, he served as an executive director and CEO of JD Health. Before that, he oversaw JD.com’s marketplace business and was subsequently in charge of different business units of JD Retail.

“JD has a sound management structure with a large number of excellent business leaders, who, represented by Mr. Lei Xu, have strong belief in JD’s long-term business philosophy, proven leadership capability and extensive industry experience,” Liu said in the company announcement.

“Looking to the future, the correct long-term strategic design, the growth and development of young talents, and the healthy and coordinated development of various business units will continue to be the driving force for JD in doing the hardest and most challenging, but right and most valuable things for the industry,” he said.

Related: JD.com Sees Massive Jumps In Revenue As China Remains Locked Down

Last month, JD.com reported $39.3 billion (253.8 billion yuan) in net revenue for the second quarter of 2021, up 26.2 percent from the same time in 2020, and net service revenues of $5.3 billion (34.1 billion yuan), almost 50 percent higher than a year ago. About $21.2 billion of that total came from electronics and home appliances, while general merchandise revenues comprised about $12.8 million.