Pandaily's Digest #20211231
DiDi's net loss attributable to ordinary shareholders in the third quarter was 30.6 billion yuan. Daniel Zhang, the chairman and chief executive of Alibaba Group, has resigned from Didi's board.
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Enjoy this week’s Pandaily’s digest.
Didi Reveals $4.8 Billion Loss, Alibaba CEO Zhang Yong Resigns From Board
DiDi Global Inc. reported its first financial report for Q2 and Q3 on Thursday, showing that its net loss attributable to ordinary shareholders in the third quarter was 30.6 billion yuan ($4.8 billion). The surprise disclosure comes as the company prepares to delist from New York.
Daniel Zhang, the chairman and chief executive of Alibaba Group, has also resigned from Didi’s board. He has been succeeded by Yi Zhang, a senior legal director at the Chinese e-commerce giant.
Ant Group Shuts Mutual Aid Platform Xianghubao Amid Crackdown
Ant Group’s mutual aid health-care platform Xianghubao will cease operations from January 18, 2022, following similar moves by other internet giants, including Meituan and Waterdrop Inc. The closure is the latest of its kind amid China’s crackdown on the fintech business.
Xiaohongshu, Source of Lifestyle Inspiration for Chinese Youth, Is Walking Fine Line between Commercial Success and Sense of Community
Finding no equivalents in Silicon Valley, Xiaohongshu is a blend of user-generated content, reviews, live-streaming and e-commerce, and represents an organic community for Chinese youth who have a bit of disposable income. As one of the country’s fastest-growing social shopping platforms, Xiaohongshu is trying to develop a sustainable business model which realizes genuine profits while maintaining the authenticity of its content as well as users’ desire to engage and share.
China Mobile’s Subsidiary in Canada to Cease Operations on January 5, 2022
China Mobile has released a statement to its official website, stating: “In compliance with the request of the Canadian Federal Government, CMLink of China Mobile Canada, will cease operations on January 5, 2022.”
The Canadian subsidiary said it will not accept any new membership applications starting from December 28 (Canadian Eastern Time), and SIM cards that haven’t been activated before January 5 will be void.
Douyin and TikTok Launch User-Paid “Reward” Function for Short Videos
Douyin recently tested the “Reward” function, which is another way for short videos creators to make money through content.
In addition, TikTok also recently launches the “Reward” function as a part of its newly-released Creator Next, designed to help creators with massive amounts of followers to commercialize content. Users reward content creators to show their appreciation, and creators receive 100% of the reward amount.
AI Startup SenseTime Officially Listed to HKEx: Rose 10% at Opening, Market Value Exceeded 140 Billion HKD
Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) unicorn startup SenseTime has officially listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEx), with a selling price per share of 3.85 HKD ($0.49) and at one point rising as high as 20%.
As of 9:30 am on December 30, SenseTime’s share price had risen 13.77% to 4.38 HKD apiece, with a market value of 145.777 billion HKD ($18.693 billion).
Evergrande Auto: First Mass-production Vehicle of Hengchi 5 Rolls Off Line
Chinese media outlet Cailian Press reported on Thursday that Hengchi 5, the first mass production model of Evergrande Auto, successfully rolled off the production line on Thursday, 12 days ahead of schedule. Evergrande held a low-key rollout event at its Tianjin plant today, the report said, adding that the company will hold a formal rollout ceremony in early January.
Former Didi Executives Convicted for Accepting Bribes
Didi’s former senior technical director in the basic platform department, an individual surnamed Yu, was convicted on Wednesday for accepting bribes. In June last year, the Chinese ride-sharing giant released an internal announcement that Yu was subject to criminal coercive measures for taking huge bribes.
XPeng Responds to Fine of $1,569 for “Overlord Clause”
A consumer told Sina Finance on Thursday that on May 8, 2019, he bought a XPeng G3 vehicle in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province and signed a purchase agreement with the EV maker.
On August 30, 2019, the vehicle owner reported to Gongshu District Market Supervision Administration of Hangzhou, saying that the agreement had not been filed according to law, and there was an overlord clause that needed to go through investigation. The market regulator found that XPeng had committed illegal acts and fined the company 10,000 yuan ($1,569).
Tesla Opens First Store in China’s Xinjiang
Tesla announced today the opening of its first store in the city of Urumqi, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in Northwest China, marking the beginning of the US electric vehicle maker’s offline store and service network presence in the region.