HONG KONG: Hong Kong’s “mom and pop” investors had been looking forward to an instant jackpot via Ant Group’s record-busting $34 billion IPO. Instead, China’s shock suspension of the listing has left them baffled and angry.
The financial tech titan’s listing came crashing down on Tuesday evening as regulators pulled the plug just two days before its dual debut in Hong Kong and Shanghai.
Demand was so strong in Hong Kong that Ant announced it was going to stop selling a day early, while in Shanghai it was more than 800 times over-subscribed.
Unlike in mainland China, Hong Kong allows margin financing, permitting investors to borrow large sums of money in the hopes of boosting their chance of share allocation.
Investors bet on a debut share spike, pay back the loan and pocket the gains while banks and brokers make money from interest.
Barring small interest payments – which some institutions may forgive – investors will get their money back.
But many in Hong Kong nonetheless expressed frustration at how Chinese regulators had made their decision so late.
“This is an international joke,” fumed Winni Cheung, 31 and self-employed who invested over HK$200,000 ($25,800) on Ant.
Adding salt to her wounds, she said, was the HK$10,000 her shares in Alibaba – Ant’s parent company – had lost on Wednesday morning as markets reacted.
“(Chinese) state media said the suspension was to protect investors like us but if they really wanted to protect us, they should have stopped the IPO when the company submitted its application for scrutiny,” she added.
Jackson Wong, an asset management director at Amber Hill Capital, said investors were “expecting a huge pop on the first day... anything from 30 to 50 percent.”
“So that would be a pretty good payday for lucky investors who will be allotted shares. Now, instead, they will not get any allotment, the IPO is not going to come. And also they might face some interest payment on their margins.”
Chris Liu pulled together a HK$1.3 million pot for Ant shares – HK$900,000 from margin financing.
“When I saw the news last night, my first reaction was that the Chinese government is really unbelievable,” he said. “I didn’t expect the IPO to go wrong like this.”
It has been a grim economic year for Hong Kong, hit by the US-China trade war, the coronavirus pandemic and last year’s roiling pro-democracy protests.
The city is deep in recession, unemployment is rising and the stock exchange is down about eight percent since the start of the year.
But first time listings have been a rare opportunity – as of September Hong Kong was third in the global IPO ranking for 2020, according to KPMG.
Bankers will be mourning the loss of some handsome commissions.
Three of the four IPO sponsors in Hong Kong were US banks. Alongside China International Capital Corp, Citigroup, JP Morgan Chase and Morgan Stanley were expected to reap the lion’s share of the estimated $400 million in fees from both Ant and investors, according to Bloomberg.
One regular investor, who asked to only give his surname Choy, said he had pulled together HK$500,000 cash and a further HK$4.5 million in margin financing.
“I invested in new IPOs all year round, no way I wasn’t going to invest in this one,” he said.
Choy, who described himself as a committed stock market “gambler,” shrugged off the interest payment losses of around HK$4,000.
“If you count my earnings from IPOs all year round, this is not a big loss to me at all,” he said.
But he was unhappy with how things unfolded.
“The suspension was announced way too late, but China has no rules. The regime is a jerk, but we can still earn money off it.”
China’s last-minute decision was quickly interpreted as a signal from the nation’s communist leaders that they were uncomfortable with the enormous influence of Ant, which has helped revolutionize commerce and personal finance but eroded the power of state financial institutions.
The opaque and often unpredictable relationship between the Chinese state and business is something many in semi-autonomous Hong Kong are becoming more familiar with.
Beijing has blanketed the city in a sweeping national security law following months of democracy protests last year and has made it clear it expects big business in the finance hub to get on side.
Liu said he felt Ant’s sudden troubles were a reminder of the Chinese state’s power.
“When a giant like Ant can fall like this, what can we ordinary people do?”
‘Mom and pop’ investors dismayed by China’s scrapping of Ant IPO
https://arab.news/rqve4
‘Mom and pop’ investors dismayed by China’s scrapping of Ant IPO
- Regulators pulled the plug just two days before its dual debut in Hong Kong and Shanghai
- Many in Hong Kong expressed frustration at how Chinese regulators had made their decision so late
Gulf-EU value chain integration signals shift toward long-term economic partnership: GCC secretary general
RIYADH: Value chains between the Gulf and Europe are poised to become deeper and more resilient as economic ties shift beyond traditional trade toward long-term industrial and investment integration, according to the secretary general of the Gulf Cooperation Council.
Speaking on the sidelines of the World Governments Summit 2026 in Dubai, Jasem Al-Budaiwi said Gulf-European economic relations are shifting from simple commodity trade toward the joint development of sustainable value chains, reflecting a more strategic and lasting partnership.
His remarks were made during a dialogue session titled “The next investment and trade race,” held with Luigi Di Maio, the EU’s special representative for external affairs.
Al-Budaiwi said relations between the GCC and the EU are among the bloc’s most established partnerships, built on decades of institutional collaboration that began with the signing of the 1988 cooperation agreement.
He noted that the deal laid a solid foundation for political and economic dialogue and opened broad avenues for collaboration in trade, investment, and energy, as well as development and education.
The secretary general added that the partnership has undergone a qualitative shift in recent years, particularly following the adoption of the joint action program for the 2022–2027 period and the convening of the Gulf–European summit in Brussels.
Subsequent ministerial meetings, he said, have focused on implementing agreed outcomes, enhancing trade and investment cooperation, improving market access, and supporting supply chains and sustainable development.
According to Al-Budaiwi, merchandise trade between the two sides has reached around $197 billion, positioning the EU as one of the GCC’s most important trading partners.
He also pointed to the continued growth of European foreign direct investment into Gulf countries, which he said reflects the depth of economic interdependence and rising confidence in the Gulf business environment.
Looking ahead, Al-Budaiwi emphasized that the economic transformation across GCC states, driven by ambitious national visions, is creating broad opportunities for expanded cooperation with Europe.
He highlighted clean energy, green hydrogen, and digital transformation, as well as artificial intelligence, smart infrastructure, and cybersecurity, as priority areas for future partnership.
He added that the success of Gulf-European cooperation should not be measured solely by trade volumes or investment flows, but by its ability to evolve into an integrated model based on trust, risk-sharing, and the joint creation of economic value, contributing to stability and growth in the global economy.
GCC–EU plans to build shared value chains look well-timed as trade policy volatility rises.
In recent weeks, Washington’s renewed push over Greenland has been tied to tariff threats against European countries, prompting the EU to keep a €93 billion ($109.7 billion) retaliation package on standby.
At the same time, tighter US sanctions on Iran are increasing compliance risks for energy and shipping-related finance. Meanwhile, the World Trade Organization and UNCTAD warn that higher tariffs and ongoing uncertainty could weaken trade and investment across both regions in 2026.
