According to Bloomberg's calculations, what still holds voting rights and economic interests in the company after the change will receive 6.2% of the voting rights after the amendment
China's Ant Group said Saturday that its billionaire founder, Jack Ma, will no longer control the financial technology giant after the company's shareholders agreed to implement a series of stock policy adjustments that would make him give up most of his voting rights...
And according to what was reported by “Bloomberg” agency, the company will grant 10 individuals, including the founder, management, and employees, voting rights independently, which effectively removes some control over the vote, but the new amendment will not change the economic interests of any shareholder in the company.
What still holds voting rights and economic interests in the company after the change will receive 6.2% of the voting rights after the amendment, according to Bloomberg's calculations.
But the decision may force the group to wait longer to resume its initial public offering, as companies cannot list locally on the country's so-called "A" stock market if they have had a change of controller in the past three years or the past two.
Several years ago, the Chinese government's crackdown has curbed the rapid growth of the internet sector, a game-changer for the country's technology champions, who prioritized growth at all costs.
Ant's plan
Earlier this month, Chinese regulators approved Ant Group's plan to raise 10.5 billion yuan ($1.5 billion) for its consumer finance unit, signaling progress in the government-demanded reform of the fintech company.
The Chongqing department of the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission gave the green light to the company's plan to increase its capital to 18.5 billion yuan, according to a notice published on December 30.
The Ant Group will thus contribute 5.25 billion yuan as part of the plan, taking up half of the increase, while the Hangzhou-owned unit will own 10 percent, becoming the second largest shareholder.
The green light is another sign that Beijing is softening its stance on companies in the giant internet sector, which has traditionally been a big engine of growth in the world's second-largest economy.
The deal solves a major hurdle for Ant: scrambling to meet regulatory requirements following a crackdown on its business that began with halting its record initial public offering in 2020.
And the authorities thwarted an initial subscription, which the company, "Ant", was planning to offer at a value of $ 37 billion. Then, the China Administration of Market Rules announced the opening of an anti-monopoly investigation into the company in December
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