Ant Group Co. has received China’s regulatory approval to complete its purchase of Hong Kong-listed brokerage Bright Smart Securities & Commodities Group Ltd, finalizing a deal agreed nearly a year ago.
According to a filing with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on Monday, Ant has completed the required reporting procedures with Chinese authorities for high-value, non-sensitive investment projects, confirming an earlier Bloomberg News report. The transaction is now expected to close on March 30.
Bright Smart’s shares surged as much as 82% on Tuesday morning to HK$16.88 (RM8.46), giving the company a market value of roughly US$3.6 billion (RM14.1 billion).
Bright Smart chairman Yip Mow Lum conditionally agreed in April to sell his 50.55% stake—about 858 million shares—to Wealthiness and Prosperity Holding Ltd for HK$3.28 per share, totaling HK$2.81 billion. Wealthiness and Prosperity is ultimately controlled by Ant, the fintech giant led by Jack Ma.
Yip, nicknamed the “Money Hunter,” founded Bright Smart in 1995 and developed it into a popular online trading platform with low brokerage fees. The company went public in Hong Kong in 2010.
Ant’s unit controlling Wealthiness and Prosperity also holds other investments in the digital brokerage sector, including the wealth management platform Ant Wealth Shanghai Yunjin Information Technology.
