Ant Group founder Jack Ma will no longer be in control of the Chinese fintech firm after its shareholders decided to implement changes that will see the billionaire businessman give up most of his voting rights, the company said on Saturday, 7 January.
"No shareholder, alone or jointly with other parties, will have control over Ant Group after the adjustment," Ant Group said in a statement, according to AFP.
This marks the latest in a series of big developments, the latest being a crackdown that halted Ant Group's $37 billion in 2020, and triggered a restructuring of the firm.
"Jack Ma's departure from Ant, a company he founded, shows the determination of the Chinese leadership to reduce the influence of large private investors. This trend will continue the erosion of the most productive parts of the Chinese economy," Andre Collier, managing director of the Hong Kong-based Orient Capital Research, was quoted as saying by Reuters.
"Despite official comments, Ant posed little risk to the financial system and was effective in arranging loans for small businesses, one of the main drivers of economic growth," Collier further added.
While Ma owns only a 10 percent stock in Ant – which is an affiliate of e-commerce company Alibaba – he had control over the company via related entities.
He thus possessed over 50 percent of the voting rights at Ant Group; however, given the latest changes, his share will fall to around 6.2 percent.
Duncan Clark, chairman of investment company BDA, said:
"Yes, it's obviously significant if he is no longer the controlling shareholder. This in theory should pave the way for an IPO assuming the other key issue - oversight/ownership of data - is also resolved."Duncan Clark
"With the Chinese economy in a very febrile state, the government is looking to signal its commitment to growth, and the tech/private sectors are key to that as we know. At least Ant investors can (now) have some timetable for an exit after a long period of uncertainty," he added.
(With inputs from Reuters and AFP.)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)