HONG KONG, Jan 13 (Reuters) - Private equity firm Primavera Group, which counts China’s Ant Group as one of its portfolio companies, remains optimistic about the financial technology giant, its chairman Fred Hu said on Wednesday, despite the ongoing regulatory crackdown. Hu’s comments come as Chinese regulators are investigating e-commerce giant Alibaba and its affiliate Ant after abruptly cancelling its initial public offering (IPO) in November last year. Alibaba founder Jack Ma, who also controls Ant, has not been seen in public since Ant’s IPO debacle. Hu said he believed Ma was “safe and sound”. For more coverage from the Reuters Next conference please click here or www.reuters.com/business/reuters-next