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Chinese competition authorities announced an investigation into the internet commerce giant on Thursday Alibaba for “suspicious monopoly practices.”
The State Administration for Market Regulation also announced that it has contacted Ant Group, the global leader in online payments and a subsidiary of Alibaba, to discuss “supervision and advice,” a few weeks after Beijing thwarted its last minute IPO.
These announcements caused Alibaba’s share to fall by 3% at the opening of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
The investigation is a blow to the Chinese business world, where Alibaba and its charismatic founder Jack Ma are symbols of the Middle Empire’s technological success.
The suspension in extremis of the Ant Group listing in early November had generated a huge surprise. Was produced a few days after Jack Ma’s speech in Shanghai, in which the billionaire criticized the attitude of financial regulators.
They are concerned about the power of technology groups and more particularly about their forays into the online credit sector, where they avoid the rules of prudence imposed on public banks.
The Chinese press has echoed concerns about the risks of financial turmoil.
The investigation against Alibaba “is an important measure for our country to strengthen antitrust supervision in the internet sector and promote a healthy long-term development of the digital economy ”, writes the People’s Daily, an organ of the Communist Party in power.
Proof of the public authorities’ concern with Alibaba is that the group was fined 500,000 yuan (62,000 euros) last week for not having reported an acquisition.
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