<p>Tencent's billionaire founder Pony Ma -- China's second richest man -- has met with anti-monopoly regulators and agreed his firm will be "as compliant as possible," after rival tech giant Alibaba was battered by legal woes.</p>.<p>Tencent, which owns the super-app WeChat and a lucrative gaming empire, is the latest tech conglomerate to fall in the crosshairs of China's regulators.</p>.<p>They have launched a blitz on apparent anti-competitive practices, threatening to slice up supersized firms whose reach now stretches into the daily finances of the public.</p>.<p>Ma, also known as Ma Huateng, said he would "actively cooperate with regulatory authorities and be as compliant as possible" during a news briefing late Wednesday on Tencent's annual results, reported Chinese financial outlet Yicai.</p>.<p><strong>Read more: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/business/business-news/china-crackdown-cuts-big-tech-down-to-size-964556.html" target="_blank">China crackdown cuts Big Tech down to size </a></strong></p>.<p>Martin Lau, Tencent's president and executive director, also said they had met with the government several times to discuss anti-monopoly efforts and hoped to create a "healthy environment" to foster innovation.</p>.<p>"Tencent has throughout attached high importance to compliance," he was quoted as saying.</p>.<p>The company's shares slumped 5 per cent from $80.93 to $76.81 by close of trading Wednesday.</p>.<p>But it reported a jump in revenue of 26 per cent to 133.67 billion yuan ($20.5 billion) last quarter, boosted by strong gaming sales during the pandemic.</p>.<p>Authorities last year halted a record $34 billion initial public offering by fintech provider Ant Group, owned by Tencent's nearest rival Alibaba.</p>.<p>They called in its billionaire founder Jack Ma and then opened an investigation into Alibaba business practices deemed anti-competitive.</p>.<p>Ant was then instructed to transform into a financial holding company that is subject to more regulatory restrictions.</p>.<p>Since then, the normally flamboyant and outspoken Ma has kept a low profile as the dragnet widens to include competitors.</p>.<p>Alibaba has been under pressure to divest its media assets as government officials are worried about its growing public influence, the Wall Street Journal reported last week.</p>.<p>In the past few months, regulators have also fined more than a dozen tech firms -- including Tencent -- for practices such as undisclosed acquisitions. Last week they summoned 11 tech firms for talks on cybersecurity</p>
<p>Tencent's billionaire founder Pony Ma -- China's second richest man -- has met with anti-monopoly regulators and agreed his firm will be "as compliant as possible," after rival tech giant Alibaba was battered by legal woes.</p>.<p>Tencent, which owns the super-app WeChat and a lucrative gaming empire, is the latest tech conglomerate to fall in the crosshairs of China's regulators.</p>.<p>They have launched a blitz on apparent anti-competitive practices, threatening to slice up supersized firms whose reach now stretches into the daily finances of the public.</p>.<p>Ma, also known as Ma Huateng, said he would "actively cooperate with regulatory authorities and be as compliant as possible" during a news briefing late Wednesday on Tencent's annual results, reported Chinese financial outlet Yicai.</p>.<p><strong>Read more: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/business/business-news/china-crackdown-cuts-big-tech-down-to-size-964556.html" target="_blank">China crackdown cuts Big Tech down to size </a></strong></p>.<p>Martin Lau, Tencent's president and executive director, also said they had met with the government several times to discuss anti-monopoly efforts and hoped to create a "healthy environment" to foster innovation.</p>.<p>"Tencent has throughout attached high importance to compliance," he was quoted as saying.</p>.<p>The company's shares slumped 5 per cent from $80.93 to $76.81 by close of trading Wednesday.</p>.<p>But it reported a jump in revenue of 26 per cent to 133.67 billion yuan ($20.5 billion) last quarter, boosted by strong gaming sales during the pandemic.</p>.<p>Authorities last year halted a record $34 billion initial public offering by fintech provider Ant Group, owned by Tencent's nearest rival Alibaba.</p>.<p>They called in its billionaire founder Jack Ma and then opened an investigation into Alibaba business practices deemed anti-competitive.</p>.<p>Ant was then instructed to transform into a financial holding company that is subject to more regulatory restrictions.</p>.<p>Since then, the normally flamboyant and outspoken Ma has kept a low profile as the dragnet widens to include competitors.</p>.<p>Alibaba has been under pressure to divest its media assets as government officials are worried about its growing public influence, the Wall Street Journal reported last week.</p>.<p>In the past few months, regulators have also fined more than a dozen tech firms -- including Tencent -- for practices such as undisclosed acquisitions. Last week they summoned 11 tech firms for talks on cybersecurity</p>