China’s corruption watchdog Central Commission for Discipline Inspection was among the top state agencies involved in a recent inquiry into links between Billionaire Jack Ma’s Ant Group Co. and state-owned Chinese companies, according to a Bloomberg report.
What Happened: The report, citing people familiar with the matter, highlighted that the agency was seeking to understand the influence of Ant Group and the extent of its transactions with state banks and enterprises.
This came after the Chinese authorities recently accused the former Communist Party chief of Hangzhou of accepting “huge” bribes, escalating a corruption probe in the city where Jack Ma’s Alibaba Group Holding Limited BABA and Ant Group are headquartered.
The Chinese government has been investing heavily in Jack Ma-owned companies for a long time now. In 2020, Xi Jinping’s government snuffed out the fintech giant’s $35 billion IPO, which was pegged as the biggest-ever IPO in history. The administration also ordered it to overhaul businesses, including lending, insurance, and wealth management and set up a financial holding company so it could be regulated as a bank.
Price Action: According to data from Benzinga Pro, shares in Alibaba, which owns a third of the Ant Group, ended 0.28% higher on the NYSE on Wednesday. However, they slipped almost 4% in the Hong Kong stock market on Thursday, among the biggest decliners in an otherwise green market.
Photo courtesy: World Economic Forum on Flickr
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