Sigh Of Relief For Alibaba, Tencent? China's Top Internet Regulator Seeks 'Affectionate' Relation With Tech Enterprises

The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), the country’s cyber watchdog, intends to build an "affectionate" relationship between internet enterprises and the government, Reuters reported citing a senior official. The verbal assurance comes at a time when the industry is recovering from a long and bruising regulatory crackdown, the report said.

Niu Yibing, vice-minister of the CAC stated in a news conference the agency was supportive of the sector's healthy development and while implementing rules, intends to create a "healthy, get-to-the-top, can-do entrepreneurial atmosphere," the report said.

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Cautious Firms: With the economy facing a slowdown, e-commerce and technology giants like Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. BABA and Tencent Holdings Ltd. TCEHY have cut back on new investments and have laid-off thousands of workers.

Didi’s Case: There is no final word on the issue of Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Global Inc DIDIY, which was the subject of a CAC-led investigation that forced the ride-hailing firm to delist from New York within a year of its debut, Reuters noted.

Sun Weimin, head of the regulator's cybersecurity coordination bureau, said CAC was supervising Didi's rectification work, and that it would continue to work to remove hidden security risks and punish any behaviour that put national security or data security at risk, according to the report.