Closer Look: JD.com's CEO Stays in Control as IPO Plans Move Forward

(Beijing) – About a month ago, the CEO of JD.com Inc., Liu Qiangdong, said the company would not go public before 2015. Yet, on January 30, the large e-retailer filed an application for an initial public offering with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Established in 2004, JD.com is the country's leading business-to-consumer company by number of accounts. The firm has become the e-grocer for many Chinese, who use Jingdong to buy food and electronics, then take usually free delivery the next day. The Beijing-based firm posted 49.2 billion yuan in revenue during the first nine months of 2013, the filing said.