Ant acquisition finally approved, Yao Cai Securities once surged 80%

Ant Group’s tender offer for Yau Tai Securities Financial has been approved, causing Yau Tai’s stock price to surge by 80%.

Wall Street Insights reported that Yau Tai Securities Financial announced on the evening of March 16 that the tender offer initiated by Ant Group has received approval from relevant authorities and is expected to settle by March 30. After the transaction, Ant Group will officially hold a controlling stake in Yau Tai Securities Financial.

The company’s stock was briefly suspended on March 16 and resumed trading on March 17. Before resumption, Yau Tai Securities traded at HKD 9.27, with a market value of approximately HKD 15.73 billion. After resuming trading, the stock price soared over 80%.

(Yau Tai Securities Financial stock opened with an increase of over 80%)

Following the completion of this acquisition, Ant Group will hold approximately 50.55% of Yau Tai Securities and will obtain a full license for Hong Kong securities brokerage operations for the first time. This move is seen as a significant step in accelerating its international expansion and completing its financial services map.

“King of Low Commissions,” Yau Tai Securities

Yau Tai Securities Financial is a well-established local Hong Kong brokerage firm, founded in 1995 and listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2010. It is one of Hong Kong’s longstanding retail brokers.

The company has established itself with a low-commission strategy. Since Hong Kong abolished the “minimum commission system” in 2003, Yau Tai significantly reduced its commission rates. Currently, online securities trading commissions are as low as 0.01%, earning it the nickname “King of Low Commissions.”

With its low-cost advantage, Yau Tai Securities has built a large retail client base. As of September 2025, its total clients exceeded 600,000, with client assets (including cash, stocks, and margin) increasing by 34.4% year-over-year to about HKD 86.3 billion.

In terms of performance, Yau Tai Securities has shown steady results. The interim report for the 2025/2026 fiscal year indicated that, as of September 30, 2025, the group’s revenue was HKD 496.9 million, up 10.7% year-over-year; net profit attributable to shareholders was HKD 326.9 million, up 4.8%; and earnings per share were HKD 19.26 cents, up 4.79%.

The company holds regulated activity licenses issued by the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) for categories 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, and 9, providing global stock trading services covering Hong Kong, US, UK, Japan, Taiwan stocks, among others. Its core businesses include securities brokerage, commodities and futures brokerage, and spot gold trading.

This acquisition took nearly a year. In April 2024, Ant Group’s wholly owned subsidiary Shanghai Yunjin Information Technology Co., Ltd. announced it would acquire 50.55% of Yau Tai Securities founder Ye Maolin’s shares at HKD 3.28 per share, totaling approximately HKD 2.814 billion.

In October of the same year, the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission approved Ant Group to become a shareholder of several regulated subsidiaries of Yau Tai.

Gaining a brokerage license to complete the financial services ecosystem

From a strategic perspective, this acquisition is highly significant for Ant Group.

For a long time, Ant Group mainly relied on payment platforms and “Ant Fortune” for wealth management services, without directly holding a brokerage license. Through acquiring Yau Tai Securities, Ant will obtain Hong Kong’s regulated activity licenses for categories 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, and 9 for the first time.

“Ant Group stated that in recent years, it has continuously increased strategic investments in Hong Kong, which has become a key hub for its global expansion. Obtaining a Hong Kong brokerage license will help accelerate its internationalization and create a more complete ecosystem in wealth management, securities trading, and cross-border financial services.”

In digital finance, Ant Group currently leverages technology, data, and platform capabilities to serve over 2,000 financial institutions nationwide. Its MYbank has provided digital credit services to over 50 million micro and small businesses.

A landmark case of internet platforms re-entering the financial licensing race

This acquisition is also widely interpreted as a significant signal of internet platforms re-entering the financial business landscape.

After Ant Group’s IPO was halted in 2020, it underwent a series of business rectifications and structural reorganizations. In recent years, with a more stable regulatory environment, Ant has begun to push forward with expanding its financial services, including overseas financial offerings.

If the acquisition completes as planned by the end of March, Ant will officially become a financial technology group directly holding a securities license.

Market analysts believe that Ant can integrate Yau Tai Securities with Alipay and Ant Fortune platforms to expand Hong Kong stock and cross-border investment products, and leverage fintech capabilities to enhance online brokerage operations. Some market participants compare this synergy potential to the “Hong Kong version of East Money.”

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