Budget 2018-19

  The number is far short of the $315 billion Ant touted for what was set to be the world's largest IPO Some of Ant Group’s global investors have valued the Chinese fintech firm at over $200 billion based on its 2020 performance, said people with knowledge of the matter, offering a more sober estimate after the shelving of its IPO and forced restructuring.The number is at least a third above Ant’s valuation after its last fundraising in 2018 when it emerged as the world’s most valuable unlisted technology company, yet is far short of the $315 billion it touted for what was set to be the world’s largest IPO.Investor hopes for a massive windfall were dashed when regulatory scrutiny scuppered the $37 billion initial public offering (IPO) days ahead of Ant’s November listing.Regulator-mandated restructuring has since made some more conservative with their internal analysis.Investors’ revised estimates of Ant’s valuation, which will determine their returns, is reported here for the firs...

  Much about the future of China’s most famous businessman remains unclear He appeared for less than a minute and said nothing about the Chinese government clampdown that had left his business empire in crisis. But for investors who’d been waiting months to catch a glimpse of Jack Ma, the entrepreneur’s participation in a live-streamed video conference on Wednesday was enough to trigger a $58 billion sigh of relief. That’s how much Alibaba Group Holding’s market value soared after a clip of Ma speaking to a group of teachers began circulating online — his first public comments since disappearing from view late last year. Much about the future of China’s most famous businessman remains unclear. Yet analysts said Wednesday’s video was a sign that worst-case scenarios — such as jail time for Ma or a government takeover of his companies –- are probably now off the table. It’s unlikely Ma would have participated in the event without at least tacit approval from Beijing; state-run media ...

The Shanghai Stock Exchange’s surprise suspension of Ant Group’s record-breaking initial public offering Tuesday night changed the landscape Nov. 3 was a sad, sad day for China. Not because America’s election changes anything about its hawkish stance toward Beijing — that’s bipartisan — but because China lost a golden investment opportunity by shooting itself in the foot. Looking purely at the numbers, China is in a sweet spot right now. Its bonds are attractive, as the yield differential with U.S. Treasuries hovers near a five-year high. Beijing’s virus-containment strategy is working, and the economy has bounced back. Meanwhile, President  Xi Jinping ’s latest five-year economic blueprint, which favors innovation and domestic consumption, is a win for tech companies — exactly the kind of growth stocks investors love. Foreigners have been buying the China story this year, even as President Donald Trump threatened to sanction and delist mainland companies. They are crowding into Be...