Alibaba wins Beijing's approval in end to years-long scrutiny

The end of the scrutiny is good for Alibaba shares.

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. has secured the endorsement of China's antitrust watchdog more than three years after a landmark probe into its online behaviour, suggesting Beijing is keen to signal its support for the country's giant internet sector.

China's e-commerce leader has ceased the monopolistic practices that prompted an investigation more than three years ago, the State Administration for Market Regulation said in a statement. It stopped forcing exclusive arrangements on merchants, improved services for shoppers and fostered competition among online platforms, the agency said.

The official endorsement coincides with growing calls of support from Beijing for private firms and the technology industry, a chorus that's grown louder as the country struggles to escape a post-Covid economic funk. Government officials have since 2023 signalled a softening in stance toward the private sector compared with 2020 and 2021, when a plethora of agencies launched regulatory crackdowns to curb the power of China's internet leaders and their billionaire founders.

The antitrust regulator launched its probe into Alibaba in 2020 as one of the opening salvos in that broader campaign, which eventually encompassed sectors from ride-hailing to online education and commerce. Less than a year later, authorities slapped a record US$2.8 billion (SG$3.65 billion) fine on Alibaba after ruling it abused its market dominance.