Chinese billionaire "Jack Ma" is under pressure... and "Ant Group" is in the eye of the storm!

Alibaba Group's billionaire founder Jack Ma relinquishes control of Ant Group, once again acquiescing to China's unprecedented crackdown on the tech sector and the fragmentation of its online empire.

The company revealed on Saturday that it would provide independent voting rights to 10 major Ant Group shareholders, including Jack Ma, effectively removing the billionaire's control of Ant Group, but it would not alter any shareholder's economic interests.

The ten shareholders are also committed independently vote on decisions.

This comes after Ma has disappeared from public view since he gave a speech criticizing Chinese regulators on the eve of Ant's 2020 listing. While many of his colleagues have abandoned their official roles at companies and increased donations in charity in line with the vision of Chinese President Xi Jinping, under the 'Shared Prosperity' campaign.

Ant has since focused on reforming its business operations to appease regulators. It consolidated its capital base for its consumer finance subsidiary and moved towards building firewalls after its ecosystem previously enabled it to handle Alipay payments for nearly a billion users, as well as services such as asset management and consumer lending.

And the change of control could mean Ant will have to wait longer to resume its long-awaited initial public offering.

While some analysts said the relinquishment of control could pave the way for the company to revive its initial public offering, the changes announced by the group on Saturday are likely to lead to further delays due to listing regulations.

The local stock market in China, known as the A market, requires companies to wait 3 years after a change of control of the target company. While it was reduced to two years in the STAR market in Shanghai – a market similar to the 'Nasdaq' – and one year in Hong Kong.

The former English teacher previously owned more than 50% of the voting rights in Ant, but the changes will mean his stake will drop to 6.2%, according to Reuters and Bloomberg accounts, which have been reviewed by Al Arabiya. net.

'Ma' holds only 10% of 'Ant Group' through its subsidiary 'Alibaba', but the latter exercised control over 'Ant Group' through some related entities, according to the 'Ant' company prospectus presented to the exchanges in 2020. .

The prospectus showed that Hangzhou Yunbo, an investment firm of billionaire Jack Ma, controls two other entities that own a combined 50.5% stake in Ant.

The fintech giant was on the verge of making the world's largest listing in 2020, challenging the country's biggest government lenders, before being scuttled when regulators launched a crackdown on the sector.

Ant's board will consist of a majority of independent directors after the company adds a fifth member to its board, according to the statement.

The Chinese government's crackdown several years ago curbed the rapid growth of the entire Internet industry and left global investors feeling the shockwaves. It was a game-changer for the country's tech champions who prioritized growth at all costs and ushered in a new paradigm for the private sector in the country.