China hits Jack Ma's Ant Group with nearly $1bn fine

July 8: China has announced more than $1bn (£778m) in fines against financial companies including Jack Ma's tech giant, Ant Group. Regulators cited violations of consumer protection laws and corporate governance.

The firm, operator of payments firm Alipay, had been one of the most high-profile targets as officials moved to tighten control of the sector. They also signalled this would end their crackdown on the industry.