In 2005, Yahoo invested $1 billion in Alibaba. 10 years later, its stake was worth more than $30 billion after the Chinese giant went public

Yahoo’s Alibaba investment changed the company’s financial story. In 2005, Yahoo paid $1 billion for a 40% stake in the Chinese e-commerce company. Ten years later, that holding was worth about $30 billion. Yahoo then dropped its plan to spin off the Alibaba stake after U.S. tax authorities refused to confirm tax-free treatment.