Alibaba Completes Rectification Period

SHANGHAI (Reuters) – China’s State Administration of Market Regulation has announced that Alibaba Group has completed three years of rectification following a record fine imposed in 2021 for monopolistic practices.

In 2021, Alibaba faced a historic fine of $2.75 billion for abusing its market position by preventing merchants on its platforms from partnering with competitors.

The regulator stated that Alibaba’s rectification efforts had yielded ‘good results’ and will continue to guide the company in regulating operations and improving compliance and quality.

This fine came amid heightened scrutiny of Alibaba’s business practices, which included the halted $37 billion IPO of its finance arm, Ant Group, after Jack Ma criticized the regulatory system in late 2020.

In response, Alibaba called the announcement a ‘new starting point for development,’ pledging to encourage the healthy growth of the platform economy and add more value to society.