HONG KONG : State-backed firms are set to take their first sizeable stake in a key Ant Group asset as part of the Chinese fintech giant's regulatory-driven revamp that was ordered after its botched November stock market debut, three people told Reuters.
Under the plan, Ant and Zhejiang Tourism Investment Group Co Ltd will each own 35per cent of the venture, while other state-backed partners include Hangzhou Finance and Investment Group and Zhejiang Electronic Port, said one of the people. In June, Ant won operational approval for a consumer finance venture whose minority shareholders include state-owned firms. The venture puts Ant's lucrative micro-lending businesses under tighter regulatory purview.
They aim to establish what would be China's third private credit-scoring firm as soon as October, two of the people said.E-commerce and financial technology firms such as Ant sit on a huge cache of consumer data that is the backbone of China's internet where, in finance, companies' offerings are as varied as loans and investment products sold via smartphones.
In January, the central bank issued draft rules clarifying the scope of information and businesses included in credit-scoring regulation and urged credit-scoring firms to apply for licences and to not over-collect user data.