China's e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd has posted its first ever quarterly loss after being forced to cough up a staggering $2.8 billion anti-monopoly fine as part of the crackdown by the Xi Jinping administration on promoter Jack Ma’s business empire.

Alibaba reported a $852 million net loss for the Jan-March quarter. The company’s shares are down about 35% from its October peak, just before Jack Ma’s spoke out against outmoded regulations in the Chinese financial system which had triggered a reprisal from the Communist country’s leadership that scrapped a $35 billion initial public offering by his Ant Group Co. and started an investigation into Alibaba’s business operations.

The company’s share price fell by 6% in the Hong Kong stock exchange after the results despite the forecast of a strong revenue for 2022  as online shopping is expected to remain buoyant during the pandemic.

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd pledged to invest in new growth arenas, and plans to move forward after the setback.  "The penalty decision motivated us to reflect on the relationship between a platform economy and society, as well as our social responsibilities and commitments," Chief Executive Daniel Zhang said in an earnings call.

“We accept the penalty with sincerity and will ensure our compliance with determination,” the CEO said. “During the past fiscal year, we have gone through all kinds of challenges, including the Covid-19 pandemic, fierce competition as well as an anti-monopoly investigation and penalty decision by Chinese regulators. We believe the best way to overcome these challenges is to look forward and invest.”