Why China Halted Ant’s I.P.O., Dealing Jack Ma a Blow – The New York Times

This was supposed to be the week that one of China’s biggest tech companies threw the most lucrative coming-out party in history, sending a swaggering message about the country’s economic might during the pandemic.

Instead, China sent a different message: No private business gets to swagger unless the government is on board with it.

Regulators pulled the plug Tuesday on the initial public offering of Ant Group, the internet finance giant, which had been all but ready to press “Go” on its $34 billion stock debut in Shanghai and Hong Kong.

The I.P.O. would have brought in more cash than did Saudi Aramco, the state-run oil giant, when it went public last year. And Ant would have raised the money on the opposite side of the planet from New York, which has long been the favored listing destination for Chinese tech groups.