Exterior of the Alibaba Group headquarters in Beijing on November 10, 2019 in Beijing, China.
VCG | Visual China Group | Getty Images
Chinese regulators fined Alibaba 18.23 billion yuan ($ 2.8 billion) in the technology giant’s antitrust investigation.
In a statement on Saturday, China’s state administration for market regulation accused Alibaba of abusing its dominant market position.
Regulators opened a probe into the company’s monopolistic practices in December. The main focus of the survey was a practice that forces traders to choose one of the two platforms, rather than being able to work with both.
The government said the “choose one” policy and others allowed Alibaba to strengthen its market position and gain unfair competitive advantages.
“Alibaba sincerely accepts the punishment and will resolutely enforce it,” Alibaba said in a statement. “In order to fulfill its responsibility to society, Alibaba will operate in accordance with the law with the utmost diligence, continue to strengthen its compliance systems and rely on growth through innovation.”
The company added that it will hold a conference call on Monday at 8:00 a.m. Hong Kong time to discuss the fine.
The announcement is the latest evolution of China’s crackdown on its technology companies. Regulators have become increasingly concerned about the strength of China’s technology giants, especially those operating in the financial sector.
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