Ant Group Nears China Approval to Complete HK$2.8 Billion Bright Smart Deal

Ant Group is nearing the completion of its acquisition of Bright Smart Securities & Commodities Group, a deal first agreed nearly a year ago, according to people familiar with the matter.

As Bloomberg reports, the company is close to securing regulatory approvals in mainland China, although authorities have yet to announce a final decision.

Bright Smart chairman Yip Mow Lum agreed in April to sell his 50.55% stake, around 858 million shares, to Wealthiness and Prosperity Holding, an entity ultimately controlled by Ant.

The deal values the stake at HK$3.28 per share, or HK$2.81 billion.

Since the announcement, Bright Smart’s shares have more than tripled to HK$9.27, lifting its market capitalisation to about US$2 billion.

The exchange suspended trading on Monday after the stock surged 34% on Friday (March 13).

In a filing at the time of the agreement, Ant stated it would not raise its cash offer of HK$3.28 per share.

Yip, known as the “Money Hunter”, founded Bright Smart in 1995 and built it into an online brokerage platform offering low commission trading.

The Ant unit that controls Wealthiness and Prosperity also holds various investments in the digital brokerage space, including Ant Wealth Shanghai Yunjin Information Technology, a wealth management platform.

Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Hong Kong, based on image by user6699736 via Freepik

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