China Fines Alibaba Record $2.8 Billion After Monopoly Probe
- E-commerce leader accepts punishment and pledges to improve
- Company will host a conference call Monday in Hong Kong
Outside the Alibaba Group Holdings Ltd. headquarters in Hangzhou, China, earlier in March.
Photographer: Qilai Shen/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
China slapped a record $2.8 billion fine on Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. after an anti-monopoly probe found it abused its market dominance, as Beijing clamps down on its internet giants.
The 18.2 billion yuan penalty is triple the previous high of almost $1 billion that U.S. chipmaker Qualcomm Inc. had to pay in 2015, and was based on 4% of Alibaba’s 2019 domestic revenue, according to China’s antitrust watchdog. The company will also have to initiate “comprehensive rectifications,” from protecting merchants and customers to strengthening internal controls, the agency said in a statement on Saturday.