(Yicai Global) Aug. 21 -- State-owned China Post aims to take its express mail service, better know as EMS, public within three years, while defending its competitive advantages amid an ever-growing challenge from private couriers such as SF Express and Alibaba's Cainiao.

The group will introduce strategic investors next year to ensure a successful initial public offering, local news outlet Securities Daily reported, citing Liu Aili, chairman of Beijing-based China Post. Liu spoke yesterday at a partnership signing ceremony between China Post and China Tower, the country's major telecom infrastructure builder. He did not disclose more details about the IPO.

EMS was formed in 2015 by combining assets of China Post's provincial subsidiaries, sparking the first speculation over possible listing plans.

China Post has lost part of its market share to rapidly growing private equivalents, such as SF Holding and Cainiao, the logistics unit of e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding. Shanghai-based ZTO Express went public in New York in 2016 while other delivery firms, including SF Express, STO Express, YTO Express, and Yunda Express, have gone public via backdoor listings. 

Editor: Emmi Laine