NEW YORK, Dec. 07, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Pomerantz LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Alibaba Group Holding Limited (“Alibaba” or the “Company”) (NYSE: BABA) and certain of its officers. The class action, filed in United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, and docketed under 20-cv-10267, is on behalf of a class consisting of all persons and entities other than Defendants that purchased or otherwise acquired Alibaba securities between July 20, 2020 and November 3, 2020, inclusive (the “Class Period”). Plaintiff pursues claims against the Defendants under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”) and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder.
If you are a shareholder who purchased Alibaba securities during the Class Period, you have until January 12, 2021 to ask the Court to appoint you as Lead Plaintiff for the class. A copy of the Complaint can be obtained at
www.pomerantzlaw.com
. To discuss this action, contact Robert S. Willoughby at
[email protected]
or 888.476.6529 (or 888.4-POMLAW), toll-free, Ext. 7980. Those who inquire by e-mail are encouraged to include their mailing address, telephone number, and the number of shares purchased.
[Click here for information about joining the class action]
Alibaba is an online and mobile commerce company. Alibaba owns a 33% equity interest in Ant Small and Micro Financial Services Group Co., Ltd. (“Ant Group”), a financial technology company that is best known for operating Alipay, one of the largest mobile and online payments platforms.
On July 20, 2020, Ant Group announced that it had begun the process of a concurrent initial public offering (“IPO”) on the Shanghai and Hong Kong stock exchanges. On October 26, 2020, Ant Group priced its IPO and was set to raise $34.5 billion, making it the largest public offering in history.
The complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements, as well as failed to disclose material adverse facts about the Company’s business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, Defendants failed to disclose to investors that: (i) Ant Group did not meet listing qualifications or disclosure requirements for certain material matters; (ii) certain impending changes in the Fintech regulatory environment would impact Ant Group’s business; (iii) as a result of the foregoing, Ant Group’s IPO was reasonably likely to be suspended; and (iv) as a result of the foregoing, Defendants’ positive statements about the Company’s business, operations, and prospects were materially misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis.
On November 2, 2020,
Financial Times
reported that Chinese regulators had met with Ant Group’s controller Jack Ma, executive chairman Eric Jing, and Chief Executive Officer Simon Hu. The article stated that, though regulators did not provide details, “the Chinese word used to describe the interview –
yuetan
– generally indicates a dressing down by authorities.” The article also included a statement from Ant Group that it will “implement the meeting opinions in depth.”
On November 3, 2020, the IPO was suspended because Ant Group “may not meet listing qualifications or disclosure requirements due to material matters” related to the meeting with regulators the previous day and “the recent changes in the Fintech regulatory environment.”
On this news, Alibaba’s American Depository Share price fell $25.27 per share, or 8%, to close at $285.57 per share on November 3, 2020, on unusually heavy trading volume.
The Pomerantz Firm, with offices in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Paris is acknowledged as one of the premier firms in the areas of corporate, securities, and antitrust class litigation. Founded by the late Abraham L. Pomerantz, known as the dean of the class action bar, the Pomerantz Firm pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 80 years later, the Pomerantz Firm continues in the tradition he established, fighting for the rights of the victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty, and corporate misconduct. The Firm has recovered numerous multimillion-dollar damages awards on behalf of class members. See
www.pomerantzlaw.com
.
CONTACT:
Robert S. Willoughby
Pomerantz LLP
[email protected]
888-476-6529 ext. 7980
