JD.com-backed micro lender slashes IPO by 70pc after China’s internet finance crackdown

Lexin Fintech Holdings, a Chinese online micro lender backed by JD.com, sharply cut the amount it hoped to raise in a planned US initial public offering, after shares in its rivals declined broadly on the heels of a crackdown by Beijing on online consumer loan platforms.

Lexin Fintech, which targets consumers between the ages of 18 and 36, plans to offer 12 million American depositary shares at an indicative price range of US$9 to US$11 a share, raising as much as US$132 million, the company said in an updated filing on Thursday to the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

The fundraising value is sharply down from an originally planned US$500 million, as mentioned in the IPO prospectus issued last month.

The Shenzhen-based company has applied to list on Nasdaq under the symbol LX.

The move comes after the company’s rivals declined broadly in the United States market following tightened scrutiny of online consumer lending by China last month.

The Chinese government has warned recently about rising household debt and issued rules to regulate online financial activity, including suspending approvals for new internet micro loan companies countrywide.

Online micro credit provider Qudian, which launched the biggest US listing by a Chinese fintech company in October, has plunged in the past month, closing at US$13.98 on Wednesday night. That is down 42 per cent from its IPO price of US$24. Qudian is backed by Alibaba Group Holding, which owns the South China Morning Post.