The founder of the financial technology company Ant Group, Jack Ma, paid for the fact that, as one of the few Chinese entrepreneurs, he still dared to publicly express his views on financial regulation. The Chinese authorities did not like it, and in the end it prevented his company from entering the stock market, which would make him the eleventh richest man in the world. The German business daily Handelsblatt wrote on Thursday.
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Jack Ma’s remarks have aroused regular debate in China. The same was true after his speech at a conference in Shanghai on October 24, where he called for less regulation of financial services. He was first opposed by a high-ranking supervisor who argued that Fintech companies should be subject to the same regulation as banks.
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On Monday, three days before the planned listing of Ant Group on the Hong Kong and Shanghai stock exchanges, the authorities announced plans to limit the possibilities of granting microcredit. This would severely damage the Ant Group as well.
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Subsequently, events took a quick turn. On the same day, Jack Ma’s regulators summoned and on Tuesday, it was announced that Ant Group’s primary public offering (IPO), which was supposed to be the largest in history, was canceled.
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It may take place later, but according to analysts, the price of the offered shares will be lower due to this step and the new rules. According to Reuters sources, it is not realistic in the coming months.
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According to Reuters sources, Ma wrongly concluded that it could challenge the financial establishment to a duel while maintaining the support of the central leadership. However, according to one Reuters source, one of its priorities this year is to tighten supervision of the financial sector in order to reduce systemic risks for the economy affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
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