Ant Group has reduced its holdings in Orbbec,Friend’s Mothers 4 a Chinese AI-powered 3D vision tech firm, and Youon Technology, known as China’s first publicly listed bike-sharing company, as it shifts its focus to emerging technologies and global markets. Between Jan. 10 and March 14, 2025, Ant’s investment arm, Shanghai Yunxin, sold 8.82 million shares in Orbbec, raising about RMB 556 million ($77 million). Despite the sale, Ant remains Orbbec’s second-largest shareholder with a 10% stake. On March 26, Ant Group stated that it is reallocating capital from long-term, profitable investments to earlier-stage opportunities. The firm has gained over RMB 775 million ($108 million) in returns from these divestments. Ant Group also offloaded a 6% stake in Youon Technology to investor Yang Lei for RMB 219 million ($30 million), reducing its stake from 7.86% to 1.43%. Ant initially invested RMB 100 million ($14 million) in Youon Technology in 2014. Youon Technology, which has struggled financially, expects a 2024 net loss of RMB 55 million to RMB 80 million ($7.6 million to $11 million). Its stock briefly surged after a change in ownership but fell 6.22% on March 26, closing at RMB 18.7 ($2.58) per share. [Jiemian, in Chinese]
