Shares of Moneygram are tumbling after hours following the decision by the US government not to approve its merger with Ant Financial – a banking affiliate of China’s Alibaba.

As Reuters reports, the companies were unable to get an approval for the deal from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), according to a joint statement.

CFIUS is a secretive government panel which reviews acquisitions by foreign entities for potential national security risks.

“Despite our best efforts to work cooperatively with the U.S. government, it has now become clear that CFIUS will not approve this merger”, MoneyGram Chief Executive Alex Holmes said.

Ant Financial will pay a $30 million termination fee for the break-up of the deal, in which Ant Financial agreed to buy MoneyGram for $18 a share.

The US government’s decisions smashed the price down to its lowest since Dec 2016…

While there has been some writing on the well over this CFIUS decision, one can’t help but wonder at the recently increased rhetoric between Washington and Beijing amid North Korea tensions and the possibility of a looming petro-yuan.