Ant Group likely to see at least $1.1B fine from Chinese regulator

Ant Group is likely to face a fine of at least RMB 8B (~$1.1B) from Chinese authorities, marking an end to the company’s regulator-driven revamp, Reuters reported citing people with knowledge of the matter. The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) had been steering the revamp at Ant — a finance affiliate of Alibaba (NYSE:BABA) (OTCPK:BABAF) — after its potential $37B IPO was cut short in 2020. The fine could be disclosed in the coming days, even as soon as Friday. The fine would help pave the way for Ant to secure a financial holding company license, seek growth, and eventually,…