Ant’s employees expected a windfall. They got unsellable shares

They were just days away from a multi-billion-dollar windfall.

But now employees of Jack Ma’s Ant Group Co. are stuck holding shares so difficult to value that even the company itself is struggling to determine a fair price. It has shelved a share buyback program for current and departing staff, in part because of uncertainty over how to value the company, according to Ant executives familiar with the matter.