Ant Group Subsidiary Drops Off Shanghai’s ‘High-Tech’ List

Alipay.com Co. Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of fintech giant Ant Group Co. Ltd., has been disqualified from the Shanghai government’s list of high-tech firms, a label that comes with tax breaks or fiscal subsidies.

Alipay.com failed to meet the spending requirement for research and development (R&D), according to a government notice dated Sept. 8. To qualify for high-tech status in the city, companies need to have spent at least 3% to 5% of their sales revenue on R&D in the three most recent fiscal years, with at least 60% of the expenditure occurring on the Chinese mainland, according to local regulations.