Twitter LinkedIn
    Saturday, April 1
    Login
    0 Shopping Cart
    Twitter LinkedIn
    Private Equity InsiderPrivate Equity Insider
    • About Us
    • Digital Events
    • Our Network
      • Reach
      • Sponsors
      • Members
    Private Equity InsiderPrivate Equity Insider
    Home»Investments»China Considers Requiring Ant to Sell Finance Investments, Source Says
    Investments

    China Considers Requiring Ant to Sell Finance Investments, Source Says

    December 31, 20202 Mins Read
    LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Email WhatsApp
    Share
    LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Email WhatsApp

    Chinese regulators are studying plans to force Ant Group Co. to divest equity investments in some financial companies, curbing the company’s influence over the sector, according to a person familiar with the matter.

    The plans, which would involve pushing Ant to sell some of its minority shares in operations such as banking-related businesses, are part of a push by watchdog agencies to regulate so-called financial holding companies, the person said, requesting not to be named because the matter is private. An Ant spokesperson declined to comment on Thursday.

    China is cracking down on Jack Ma’s internet empire, which includes e-commerce leader Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. The stunning unraveling of Ant’s $35 billion initial public offering in November set in motion a string of regulatory decrees that threaten to reshape the landscape for China’s online operators.

    Ant has been told by the central bank to devise a plan to overhaul its business and come up with a timetable as soon as possible. It’s now said to be planning a holding company to house its wealth management, consumer lending, insurance and payments services as well as MYbank. Under such a structure, Ant’s businesses would likely be subject to more capital restrictions, and the company may be required to unload some of its wide-ranging investments should regulations tighten further. That potentially curbs its ability to lend more and expand at the pace of the past few years.

    Ant’s total minority investments in finance-related operations don’t exceed the current regulatory limit of 15% of its net assets, said another person familiar. The company holds shares in state-owned Postal Savings Bank of China Co. and a 30% stake in online lender MYbank. Those assets don’t need to be sold under the current rules for financial holding companies though that may change if regulations tighten, the person said.

    The discussions are still preliminary and subject to change, the people said. Reuters reported earlier that regulators are pushing Ant to divest its stakes in technology as well as finance startups, citing anonymous sources.

    Under rules that took effect in November, non-financial companies that control at least two cross-sector financial institutions are required to secure a financial holding license. The precise rules on how financial holding companies could be regulated in the future remain under deliberation.

    Source: Bloomberg

     

    Related

    Can't stop reading? This and all news articles are property of their creators, many are not owned or provided by Private Equity Insider. As an event organizer and community platform, we curate content from reliable sources for your suggested reading, and advise you to read the full articles from the referenced authors and sources.

    Ant China Investments Private Equity
    Share. LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Email WhatsApp

    Related Posts

    Private equity firms Apollo and KKR among those reviewing Silicon Valley Bank loans

    March 16, 2023

    Euroclear moves into $9.8 trillion private asset market with Goji buy

    December 21, 2022

    CAI raises over $1B for inaugural fund and co-investment programme

    November 18, 2022

    KKR looking to sell Canadian gas producer Westbrick for $1.13B

    November 18, 2022

    Comments are closed.

    Other Articles

    NBA’s private equity plan in motion, betting on the allure of sports ownership

    January 26, 2021

    Five Aim stocks with plenty of potential for 2021

    December 29, 2020

    Highview Capital portfolio company Randall Foods appoints CEO

    May 29, 2021

    SoftBank backs Steven Mnuchin’s $2.5bn private equity fund

    September 23, 2021

    Private Equity Insider LLC
    1212 Avenue of the Americas
    New York City 10036
    USA

    [email protected]

    Twitter LinkedIn
    © 2023 Private Equity Insider LLC. All rights reserved.
    • About
    • Terms of Use
    • Cookie Policy
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact Us

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

    View Cart Checkout Continue Shopping

    Sign In or Register

    Welcome Back!

    Login to your account below.


    Lost password?