Manus founder Xiao Hong's exit restriction to be lifted, plans to return to Singapore

Odaily reported that the Financial Times, citing two sources familiar with the matter, said regulators are preparing to lift exit restrictions on Manus founder and CEO Xiao Hong and others. Xiao Hong has told employees he plans to return to Singapore soon. Xiao Hong and Manus co-founder and chief scientist Ji Yichao were asked to remain in mainland China in March this year, when regulators were investigating whether Meta's acquisition of Manus violated relevant regulations. In April, regulators asked Meta to scrap the approximately $2 billion acquisition.

Manus has officially confirmed this week that it will resume independent operations. The separation plan is also largely taking shape. Original shareholders including Tencent, ZhenFund, and HSG will participate in the buyback, with Tencent also acquiring most of Benchmark's shares to become Manus's largest single shareholder, though its stake will not exceed 50%. Manus will not be merged into Tencent and will continue to operate independently in Singapore. The final plan still requires regulatory approval. Based on the current plan, what regulators are asking to be dismantled is Meta's acquisition relationship with Manus, and there is no requirement for Manus to move its business back to China.