Alibaba leads $260 bn sell-off in China

Chinese technology giants from Alibaba Group Holding Ltd to Tencent Holdings Ltd shed almost $260 billion of market value over two days of frantic selling, as investors scrambled to assess the fallout from Beijing’s broadest attempt to rein in its most powerful private-sector firms.

Technology shares tumbled for a second day after Beijing issued regulations designed to curb the growing influence of internet-sector leaders including JD.com Inc., Meituan and Xiaomi Corp. The Hang Seng Tech Index slumped 5.6% on

Wednesday in Hong Kong, taking its two-day loss to 10% as of midday. Shares in the quintet of firms have sunk at least 8% over two sessions.

Beijing unveiled regulations to root out monopolistic practices in the internet industry, pivoting away from a mostly hands-off approach while dealing a blow to businesses at the heart of the world’s No. 2 economy. The vaguely worded edict landed a week after new restrictions on finance triggered the shock suspension of Ant Group Co.’s $35 billion IPO, scuppering founder Jack Ma’s ambitions to dominate online finance in the process. They also emerged on the eve of Singles’ Day, the event Ma invented a decade ago that’s evolved into the nation’s largest annual shopping spree.

”China’s Big Tech will have to rethink their business models,” said Zhan Hao, a managing partner with Beijing-based Anjie Law Firm. “The philosophy of internet companies is winnertakes-all, and especially for platform operators, they garner user traffic and build up ecosystems that are similar to each other.”

TECH SHARES FELL AFTER BEIJING ISSUED RULES TO CURB THE SECTOR