The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection – China’s top anti-corruption watchdog – is reportedly amongst the agencies involved in the recent inquiry about fintech giant Ant's ties with state-owned firms.
In February, multiple regulators were involved in an inquiry about the reach of Ant Group’s linkages in the country, across banks and state-owned firms.
And in the latest development, a «Bloomberg» report citing unnamed sources said that the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) was one of the agencies involved.
The CCDI is China’s top anti-graft agency that focuses on corruption amongst senior members of the Communist Party.
Zhou Jiangyong
According to the report, the CCDI’s involvement was driven by its investigation into Zhou Jiangyong – ex-party chief of Hangzhou, which is the home of Ant’s headquarters.
Earlier this week, Zhou was charged with accepting very large bribes but court statements did not name Ant or any other companies. In January, Zhou was also featured in a documentary broadcasted by state media showing him and his brother’s involvement in a corruption scandal. One week after the broadcast, he was expelled by the Communist Party.
Jack Ma’s Ant Group continues to face innumerable challenges since the cancellation of its IPO in November 2020.
