Jack Ma’s online platform MYbank plans $282b crisis lending spree

Jack Ma’s online platform MYbank plans $282b crisis lending spree

Yunfeng Capital co-founder Jack Ma. Photo: Drew Angerer/Bloomberg

With China’s economy in free fall and millions of small businesses running low on cash, the online lending platform backed by billionaire Jack Ma entered crisis mode.

It was mid-February, near the peak of China’s coronavirus outbreak, and MYbank had to decide whether to reduce its exposure or keep doling out loans. After a two-day marathon of calls and emails from self-isolation, the firm’s executives agreed with 25 partner banks on a potentially risky strategy: cut interest rates and turn on the credit taps like never before.

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