Sitting duck

21 May 2018 By Robyn Mak Follow @mak_robyn

The Alibaba-linked outfit is pitching itself as more tech than fin to secure a $150 bln valuation. With over 600 mln users relying on it for payments, wealth management and loans, though, Ant is part of the fabric of Chinese finance. Beijing would be wise to regulate accordingly.

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China's Ant Financial is close to raising at least $9 billion at a $150 billion valuation, according to a person familiar with the matter. International investors including Singapore's Temasek and private equity firm Carlyle will participate for the first time.

The company, controlled by Alibaba founder Jack Ma, has 622 million users on its payments-to-wealth management service and manages 2.2 trillion yuan ($345 billion) worth of assets, according to a May 17 report in the Financial Times, citing investor presentation documents.

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