WASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 E-commerce billionaire Jack Ma will give up control of Ant Group, the leading Chinese financial technology provider he founded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In a statement posted Friday, Ant Group said that after an ownership restructuring, \u201cno shareholder, alone or with other parties\u201d will have \u201ccontrol over Ant Group.\u201d The company is an affiliate of e-commerce giant Alibaba, which Ma also founded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The move follows other efforts over the years by the Chinese government to rein in Ma and the country\u2019s tech sector more broadly. Two years ago, the once high-profile Ma\u00a0largely disappeared from view for 2 1\/2 months\u00a0after criticizing China\u2019s regulators.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The government at the same time also forced Ant Group to call off a highly-anticipated IPO that would have raised over $3 billion, just days before it was to launch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Yet Ma\u2019s surrender of control comes after other signs the government was easing up on Chinese online firms. Late last year Beijing signaled at an economic work conference that it would\u00a0support technology firms to boost economic growth\u00a0and create more jobs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And last month, the government said it would allow Ant Group\u00a0to raise $1.5 billion in capital\u00a0for its consumer finance unit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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