Jack Ma is giving up controlling rights of Ant Group Co., as the billionaire further retreats from his online empire following China’s unprecedented tech crackdown. The company is offering 10 individuals, including the founder, management and staff, voting rights independently, effectively removing Ma’s control of Ant, according to an announcement on Saturday. [Jack Ma cedes control of Ant Group – FT]
The adjustment will not change economic interests of any shareholders.
Ma has mostly disappeared from public view since giving a speech that criticized Chinese regulators on the eve of the scuttled Ant listing in 2020, and shortly afterwards the listing of Ant Group failed spectacularly.
Over the past two years, due to the Chinese government's regulatory intervention in the huge Alibaba conglomerate and its monopoly, the value of companies under Ma's control has halved and he has lost his position as China's richest person. Ma has since pledged to restructure the group's management to align with President Xi Jinping’s vision of achieving “common prosperity.”
