Business tycoon Jack Ma, who controls more than 50% of the fintech giant’s shares, will now only hold 6.2%.
Chinese business tycoon Jack Ma will take control of fintech giant Ant Group after a communist party repression on the country’s tech sector that targeted the billionaire.
The company said in a statement on Saturday that it was adjusting its ownership structure so that “no shareholder, alone or jointly with other parties, has control of Ant Group.”
In November 2020, Ant’s $37 billion initial public offering (IPO), which would have been the largest in the world, was canceled at the last minute. This has led to a forced restructuring of the fintech company and speculation that the Chinese billionaire is expected to take control.
Ma indirectly controlled 53.46% of Ant Group shares, making him the company’s “controlling person”. But now he will only hold 6.2% of the voting rights after the amendment, according to information in the statement.
“The adjustment is being implemented to further improve the stability of our business structure and the sustainability of our long-term development,” Ant’s statement said.
Ten people – including the founder, management and staff – “will exercise their right to vote independently”, he said.
Capital researcher Andrew Collier told Al Jazeera that Beijing has two problems with Ma.
Collier explained that Ma is a “well-funded and very popular billionaire who controls two large corporations” and has started to compete with some state-owned banks in China which are “the backbone of the economy”.
“For those two reasons, they thought he was a threat and they’re downsizing him.”
Ant operates Alipay, the world’s largest digital payment platform, which has hundreds of millions of monthly users in China and beyond.
repression
The transfer of control of Ma comes as Ant nears the end of its two-year regulatory restructuring, with Chinese authorities set to impose a fine of more than $1 billion on the company, reported. Reuters news agency in November.
In a speech at a summit in Shanghai, the mercurial mogul said banks were operating with a “pawnshop” mentality and accused financial watchdogs of stifling growth.
The expected punishment is part of Beijing’s sweeping crackdown on the country’s tech titans over the past two years, which has slashed hundreds of billions of dollars from their securities and slashed their revenues and profits.
But Chinese authorities have in recent months softened their tone on the tech crackdown as part of efforts to bolster a $17 trillion economy that has been badly hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“With China’s economy in a very February state, the government is looking to signal its commitment to growth, and the technology and private sectors are key to that, as we know,” said Duncan Clark, chairman of the company. investment advisory BDA China.
“At least you, the investors, can [now] have a timeline for a release after a long period of uncertainty,” said Clark, who is also an author of a book on Alibaba and Ma.
Beijing also has hit alibaba – the internet titan co-founded by Ma that operates popular Chinese shopping platforms Taobao and Tmall – with a record $2.75 billion fine for alleged unfair practices.
However, in a sign that the official grip may now be loosening, authorities said last month that Ant had secured approval to raise 10.5 billion yuan ($1.5 billion) for its credit arm at the consumption.
News of the approval sent Alibaba shares up nearly 9% in Hong Kong trading, while other tech companies also got a boost on hopes the industry crackdown could be eased.
Alibaba’s latest earnings data in November showed a loss of 20.6 billion yuan ($3 billion) for the third quarter. The company has not released full sales figures for its 2022 Singles Day shopping for the first time.
Which keep a low profile Since Ant’s failed IPO, punctuated by appearances at charity events and occasional trips abroad.
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