Ant Financial smashes expectations; closes funding round at $14bn

Alibaba’s finance spin-off, Alipay operator Ant Financial has concluded its Series C funding round with a total of $14bn raised.

This is well over the reported $9bn it was reportedly hoping to raise and brings its total value to $150bn. The valuation makes it the most highly-valued tech company in the world, at over twice the size of the second highest, Uber, which is worth $70bn.

It also cements the company’s status in the finance world, with Fortune comparing Ant Financial to the values of American Express ($87bn); Goldman Sachs ($88bn); and Morgan Stanley ($92bn).

See also:

China Everbright Bank to partner with Ant Financial’s Alipay for fintech

Baidu raises $1.9bn for its AI powered fintech arm

Alibaba’s Cainiao to lead $1.53bn investment in Hong Kong logistics hub

Investors in the second, US-dollar tranche of the round – which followed the RMB part of the funding – included Warburg Pincus, Silver Lake, Temasek and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board.

The funding will be used for international expansion of the business as well as further technology investment. CEO and Executive Chairman Eric Jung said: “We are dedicated to building an open ecosystem with all our partners in China and beyond. We will continue to invest in technology and innovation in order to serve unmet financial needs of people everywhere and to enable them to benefit from the development of the digital economy.”