Zijin’s $4B acquisition of Allied Gold faces delay in China: FT

China’s Zijin Gold’s proposed C$5.5bn (≈$4bn) cash takeover of Allied Gold is facing a delay after sources told the Financial Times that China’s National Development and Reform Commission has concerns about the ~5% premium and jurisdictional risks tied to Allied’s Mali assets. Allied shareholders had already approved the deal, but the approval delay knocked Allied’s market value (C$4.4bn) and the stock fell about 6.5% on the news. Parties extended the outside completion date by two months to the end of July while Canadian and African regulators have granted approvals. The setback raises near‑term M&A regulatory risk in the gold sector and could temper similar outbound acquisitions from Chinese miners until concerns are resolved.