Why China called time on Ant’s extraordinary IPO

China’s decision to scrap Ant Group’s IPO made headlines around the world. But why did the Party act so late and why is it so concerned about Ant? Euromoney looks at the reasons behind the decision and asks what the future holds for a firm hemmed in by a raft of new rules on everything from online lending to anti-trust and data privacy.

Elliot Wilson

December 03, 2020

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Seven assumptions about the Ant Group IPO: are they right or wrong?

Assumption 1: The IPO was pulled because Jack Ma got on the wrong side of Xi Jinping

Assumption 2: Ant Group had just got too big

Assumption 3: This was a show of strength by the Party

Assumption 4: The decision to postpone Ant’s IPO was an easy one to make

Assumption 5: No one could have seen this coming

Assumption 6: There are more rules to come

Assumption 7: Ant will be broken up

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Elliot Wilson

Asia editor and Global Private Banking and Wealth Management editor

Elliot Wilson is Asia editor and Global Private Banking and Wealth Management editor. He joined the magazine in 2020 having been a regular contributor focusing on China and the Indian subcontinent, Russia and Eastern Europe/the CIS. He is based in Hong Kong.