China plans online payment rules that may hit Ant, Tencent

The People's Bank of China is drafting new rules stating that any non-bank payment company with half of the market in online transactions or two entities with a combined two-thirds share could be subject to antitrust probes. — Reuters

China proposed measures to curb market concentration in its online payment market, potentially dealing another blow to financial technology giant Ant Group Co and its biggest rival Tencent Holdings Ltd.

The central bank said on Wednesday that any non-bank payment company with half of the market in online transactions or two entities with a combined two-thirds share could be subject to antitrust probes, according to draft rules released by the People’s Bank of China (PBOC).