Financial technology company Ant Group has concluded a procedure to allow its flagship Alipay payment platform to remove all “actual controllers,” according to a statement from the People’s Bank of China.
This means that Alipay will no longer have controlling stakeholders, which will optimize its corporate governance and achieve long-term sustainable development, according to the company.
Analysts said the move is a likely response to new regulators’ demands on the management and supervision of internet payment platforms, which were announced on early December 2023 and will take effect on May 1, 2024. This reflects an increasing emphasis on anti-monopoly measures, controlling risks and protecting user data to enhance customer safety.
It may also lay the groundwork to restart the firm’s stalled IPO, which the Chinese government halted in November 2020.
According to an Ant Group statement on January 7, it has adjusted its structure of shareholder voting. Ma controlled Ant through his stake and by acting in concert with other stakeholders. Ant said that shareholders had agreed to no longer control voting rights together, and would only vote independently.
Alipay was established in 2004 in Shanghai with a registered capital of 1.5 billion yuan (US$200m). It was among the first non-bank entities approved to operate a payment business in China.
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