Jack Ma relinquishes control of fintech giant Ant Group – DW – 01/07/2023
Prominent Chinese entrepreneur Jack Ma is expected to give up most of his voting rights in financial technology firm Ant Group as the company restructures in line with a regulatory crackdown.
A statement from the company on Saturday indicated that Ma’s previous control of more than 50% of the voting rights would be reduced to 6.2%.
What did the company say?
The company said it is adjusting its ownership structure so that “no shareholder, alone or together with other parties, will have control over Ant Group.”
“The adjustment is being implemented to further improve the stability of our corporate structure and the sustainability of our long-term development,” the Ant statement said.
Ten people – including the founder, management and employees – will “exercise voting rights independently”, it said.
Why has the overhaul taken place?
Beijing regulators scrapped the company’s massive planned IPO in Hong Kong in 2020 after Ma, speaking at a summit in Shanghai, accused financial authorities of stifling growth.
The restructuring aims to bring the company in line with the financial watchdog’s requirements.
Some analysts say Ma’s relinquishment of control could clear the way for the company to revive its IPO, but Chinese financial regulations regarding such structural changes mean Ant Group is likely to have to wait up to three years for an IPO.
What is the ant group?
Ant, founded by Ma in 2014, operates Alipay, the world’s largest digital payment platform. The platform is used by hundreds of millions of people every month in China and elsewhere.
It is also involved in consumer loans and the distribution of insurance products,
The Ant Group is an affiliate of the multinational technology company Alibaba Group, also founded by Ma, which runs the popular shopping platforms Taobao and Tmall. Alibaba was also hit with a record $2.75 billion (€2.58 billion) fine for alleged unfair practices during the regulatory crackdown.
Ma, a former English teacher, has kept a relatively low profile since the initial public offering, and Thai media recently reported on his presence in Bangkok.
He has seen his fortune drop by around half to an estimated $25bn (€23.4bn) over the following two years.
tj/jcg (AFP, Reuters)
