Jack Ma-backed Beijing OceanBase Technology is in discussions to raise about two billion yuan to three billion yuan (S$382 million to S$572 million) in Series A funding to operate more independently and expand into artificial intelligence database services, according to people familiar with the matter. Originally built to support Ant Group’s internal database management in 2010, OceanBase underpins Ant’s ability to handle half a million transactions per second during sales events like Singles’ Day in China. The Beijing-based company is bolstering its AI analytics capabilities, including handling semi-structured or unstructured data like videos. OceanBase had more than US$200 million (S$258 million) in annualised revenue in 2026, up 70 per cent from 2025. Its thousands of clients are predominantly Chinese, including the Industrial & Commercial Bank of China and China Mobile, and it has expanded to South-east Asia, Japan, India and Latin America. OceanBase set up an independent board and employee share-based rewards programme in 2024 to pave the way for an eventual spin-off from Ant. Ant Digital Technologies is also exploring separate fund raising, though details have yet to be determined.