According to the Financial Times , China’s central bank is trying to gain control of Ant Group’s huge consumer loan database. This is said to be a new blow for Beijing to the financial technology group of Jack Ma.

Specifically, the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) wants Ant Group to transfer its data warehouse - one of the internet empire’s most valuable as‌sets - to a state-owned credit rating company. the former central bank chief executive officer.

This company will serve other financial institutions such as state-owned banks to compete in lending with fintech companies.

The source of the Financial Times said that Ant Group still wants to lead the new company. However, the PBoC believes that this will create a conflict of interest.

"The first priority is to ensure that the new business fully complies with the regulations", one of the sources said, saying: "State participation will help the PBoC achieve those goals."

Previously, in January 2021, the PBoC announced regulations requiring Chinese businesses to ensure government approval before being allowed to provide personal credit services. The company has to secure 3 licenses and all are under government control.

This month, Chinese regulators asked Ant Group to restructure and announced a fine of Jack Ma’s Alibaba Group a record $ 2.8 billion fine.

Banks in China have long complained that Ant has benefited by not having to comply with the same stringent regulations on lending as they do. The company has built its dominance in China with more than 700 million users per month on Alipay, a mobile payment app.

Ant Group has developed a consumer lending platform with outstanding credit to around 1,700 billion yuan ($ 262 billion) as of the end of June 2020, more than any other Chinese bank. . The fintech company even charges banks for loans on their apps.

"Obviously, Ant’s credit database offers a lot of value to banks," said a former PBoC official.

Ant Group needs to find a way to legalize this data warehouse, a person familiar with the matter said. The solution is to set up a credit reporting company approved by PBoC.

However, state control could affect the ability to collect and analyze information for Ant’s core businesses, including consumer lending.

"Ant really wants to hold the most valuable as‌sets of the business," said a source.

China’s central bank will release a report this Sunday on the creation of state-controlled data companies, the Financial Times said.

Neither Ant nor PBoC have yet to comment on this matter.