Jack Ma plans to shrink his business, bow to pressure after being slapped down by the Chinese government

• Billionaire Jack Ma's Ant Group plans to restructure itself to satisfy Chinese officials, per the WSJ.
• Ma, a larger-than-life figure, criticized China's financial regulatory system last year.
• He now appears to have been brought to heel by Beijing.

Ant Group, the financial-services company founded and controlled Jack Ma, plans to restructure itself after demands from Chinese officials who have turned on his business empire, The Wall Street Journal reported.

People familiar with the matter told the Journal that Ant Group plans to turn itself into a financial holding company that would be overseen by China's central bank, and has submitted a plan to regulators.

The change was a demand from Chinese regulators. It will stop Ant from pursuing some of its plans, and allow the rest of its work to be overseen more tightly, the Journal said.

It signals a remarkable slapdown from Chinese officials, who are reining in one of the most flamboyant, successful, and recognizable figures in Chinese business.

Ma made his fortune working with Alibaba, the e-commerce company he founded in 1999 and made him one of China's richest people, with a net work pegged as high as $53.9 billion. Ma is no longer the head of Alibaba, but remains a major shareholder.

Ma's confrontation with the state peaked when he criticized China's financial regulatory system on October 24, as Ant Group was gearing up for an IPO.

He said that that China was following global rules that are part of "an old people's club."

Ma then was not seen publicly for months, after an October 31 event. He reemerged in a video-conference clip on January 20.

His absence from the public eye after clashing with the government mirrors the disappearance of popular Chinese actress Fan Bingbing, who disappeared for four months in 2019 while authorities investigated her for tax evasion.

When she appeared again, she praised the Chinese state.

On November 2, China introduced new regulations that halted the Ant Group IPO.

The Wall Street Journal reported in December that Ma offered to end the confrontation by giving the Chinese government parts of Ant Group. But the offer wasn't taken up, and China ended Ant's hopes of an IPO.

On December 23, Chinese regulators launched an antitrust investigation into Alibaba, extending the trouble for Ma.

People familiar with the matter told the Journal that the plan to turn the company into a financial holding company could be finalized by mid-February.