Ant Financial (Ant Group) used more than RMB 3 billion in capital to issue loans through ABS (Asset-Backed Securities) in a revolving manner. By cycling the funds approximately 40 times, it generated over RMB 300 billion in loan scale, resulting in a leverage ratio of over 100 times. This is far higher than the typical 10-15 times leverage of traditional commercial banks.
Shi Nong Gong Shang: The Four Traditional Classes in Ancient China
Shi (Scholar-Officials): The rulers and administrators of society.
“All professions are inferior; only scholarship is noble.”
Nong (Farmers): The producers. Only when food supply is sufficient can society remain stable and free from unrest.
Gong (Artisans): Although they work with resources from the land, they create tools that make production easier and more efficient.
Shang (Merchants): They produce nothing and manufacture nothing. They profit solely by buying low and selling high. To the ruling class, they were seen as a destabilizing force in society.
This hierarchy reflects ancient feudal values. Today, however, industry and commerce are deeply integrated, and merchants hold a very high social status.