Trump Puts The Kibosh On $37 Billion Payday For The CCP
On November 3, 2020, Hangzhou, China-based financial technology company Ant Group pulled its imminent US$37 Billion IPO. Ostensibly, Beijing regulatory authorities and President Xi Jinping were pissed-off at Ant chairman Jack Ma’s recent criticisms of Chinese financial regulations.
It was to have been the largest IPO ever and a huge payday for Ma, 17 current/former executives, part-owner AliBaba Group, institutional investors China Investment Corp, China Construction Bank, China Life Insurance, China Post and others. Undisclosed shareholders in Ant Group parent companies, Junhan and Junao, can safely be assumed to include many CCP leaders and lackeys who have enabled the company’s stratospheric growth.
Bankers at Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley, China International Corp and CSC Financial had been salivating over deal fees of $300+ Million. Oops…
More likely than Xi and his cronies forsaking the Ant jackpot willingly is the probability that their national security intelligence on Trump’s looming landslide forced a retreat. In his second term Trump is certain to double down on China trade sanctions and restrictions on CCP-linked corporates. Evidence of CCP interference in US elections will result in the suspension of Chinese stocks trading in US and other Western markets. Banks and even electronic settlements systems will be forbidden to serve Chinese corporates. Why? Because it will become generally accepted that all Chinese companies exist and survive ultimately at the whim and service of the CCP thugs. Fraud, greed, extortion and fear permeate China’s economy and society. Allowing CCP China into the WTO tainted us all. Ant itself partially owns military-AI company Megvii Tech that is sanctioned by the US and included on a national security watch list.
Trump’s landslide and second term, while obfuscated temporarily by CCP-backed voter fraud, was evident enough to Xi on November 3rd. Taking the IPO proceeds now at a massive premium when the stock would have tanked within months would be a political/social shit-show. All new investors would be irate at the very visible CCP payoff. To avoid a predictable, self-inflicted and very public embarrassment Xi made the brutally tough call to yank the deal and decline the big payday. Trump wins again and Xi must now confront the threat of many deeply unhappy CCP cadres within his court.
For some additional background:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/kenrapoza/2020/11/12/behind-ant-groups-failed-ipo-a-sign-of-more-to-come/?sh=55a694eb2710