Huitongda, the commerce platform targeting merchants and suppliers in China’s lower-tier cities, has won a green light from the Hong Kong stock exchange’s listing committee and will start an investor education process this week, according to people familiar with the transaction. Huitongda, in which Alibaba (China) Network Tech holds a 19.1 per cent stake, is aiming to raise between US$500 million and US$1 billion, according to these people, who asked not to be named because they are not authorised to speak publicly about the deal. Network Tech is a subsidiary of Alibaba Group Holding, which owns the South China Morning…