Ant Group’s net profit fell about 60 percent in the quarter ended 31 March as the Chinese fintech expanded abroad and increased spending on artificial intelligence (AI) to drive growth, Bloomberg reported.

Alibaba’s filings, which record Ant with a one-quarter lag, indicate Ant earned roughly 4.74 billion yuan, or about US$663 million, in the period.

Alibaba recognised around 1.5 billion yuan as its share of Ant’s profit, consistent with its one-third stake.

The drop followed a year-on-year decline of about 31 percent in the prior quarter.

Ant’s Singapore-based international unit generated nearly US$3 billion in revenue in 2024, a performance that has fueled expectations of a potential listing of the overseas division in Hong Kong.

The company is also investing in AI across products and infrastructure.

Reports say Ant has trained large models on domestically produced chips and is pursuing efficiency gains alongside new services in areas such as healthcare.

Ant continues to navigate the aftermath of China’s regulatory crackdown that halted its 2020 mega-IPO, which once targeted a valuation near US$280 billion.

A 2023 share buyback valued the group at about US$79 billion.

Any renewed listing remains subject to regulatory outcomes, with Bloomberg previously reporting that the company would explore Hong Kong first, and Ant earlier cautioning against premature IPO speculation.

Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Singapore, based on image by Freepik