China has given Ant Group the green light for a US$1.5 billion raise for the consumer arm of Jack Ma’s fintech titan, Bloomberg reported.
According to a notice from the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission division in Chongqing, the approval allows Ant to boost its capital to 18.5 billion yuan (US$2.7 billion).
Of that amount, Ant contributed US$761 million. The company will hold 50% of its shares, while a unit owned by the city of Hangzhou will control 10%. This makes the latter the second-largest shareholder of Ant.
The approval comes as analysts predict a return of Ant’s IPO plans, following an entity owned by the firm winning rights for a plot of land in Shanghai.
The report also noted that the development may signal the loosening of China’s grip on its homegrown tech giants. Just last week, China gave out a fresh batch of approvals for new games, benefiting companies such as Tencent.
See also: Behind Ant Group’s revived SEA ambitions
Currency converted from Chinese yuan to US dollar: US$1 = 6.9 yuan.
Editing by Lorenzo Kyle Subido
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