Chinese billionaire and Alibaba founder Jack Ma has not been seen in public for over two months, raising heavy suspicions about his whereabouts and health, given that he lambasted China’s banking system in his last public appearance.
Ma was set to appear on his Africa Business Heroes television talent show, in which African entrepreneurs compete for the chance to win $1.5 million. However, he was replaced by an Alibaba executive. Although the company told Reuters that this was due to a “scheduling conflict”, no further information was provided.
On October 24, Ma said in a speech, “Today’s financial system is the legacy of the Industrial Age,” adding, “We must set up a new one for the next generation and young people. We must reform the current system.” He said China currently has a ‘pawnshop’ mentality and is run by an “old people’s club”, arguing that “we can't use yesterday's methods to regulate the future”.
In the aftermath of this speech, which was seen as a criticism of China’s banking system, Alibaba’s affiliated IPO, Ant Financial, was suspended and regulators launched an antitrust investigation into Alibaba. Chinese regulators have ordered the Ant Group to “overhaul” its business and criticized the Ant group for crowding out the market and impeding both competition and ‘consumer rights’, while Alibaba is also been investigated for ‘monopolistic’ tendencies.
This instability has led to Alibaba’s shares falling on the stock market. Moreover, Ma’s net worth has plummeted by roughly $11 billion since October.
It must be conceded that Ma is no longer the executive chairman of Alibaba, after stepping down from the role in 2019, and does not hold an executive or board level role in either Alibaba or Ant Financial. However, he continues to be Alibaba’s biggest individual shareholder and has “ultimate control” over the Ant Group. At the same time, he has typically made regular public appearances and posts on social media platform Weibo. Hence, his continued disappearance raises alarm bells.
Duncan Clark, the chairman of Beijing-based tech consultancy firm BDA China, said, “I think he's been told to lay low,” going on to say, “This is a pretty unique situation, more linked to the sheer scale of Ant and the sensitivities over financial regulation.” In fact, the Washington Post argues that entrepreneurs who gain greater press notoriety are more likely to investigated by Chinese authorities, which is intended to act as a deterrent force to businesspeople who wish to gain more media coverage.
Ma’s disappearance is not entirely unprecedented in China. In fact, Chinese billionaires and businesspeople regularly ‘vanish’, only to reappear days later. However, others have ended up in prison or mysteriously fallen from buildings. For example, in March, former property tycoon and member of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Ren Zhiqiang went missing after writing a scathing essay on the government’s efforts to tackle the coronavirus. In September, it was announced that he had been sentenced to 18 years in prison on charges of corruption.
Given that Ma’s criticism was comparatively much softer and did not directly criticise President Xi Jinping, one assumes that he is not in danger of being arrested or killed. However, this is hardly a certainty in China.
Alibaba Founder Jack Ma Hasn’t Been Seen in Public For Over Two Months, Fuelling Suspicion
The Chinese billionaire was last seen in October, when he criticised Chinese financial regulators and the country’s banking system.
January 5, 2021
IMAGE SOURCE: WANG HE / GETTY IMAGESChinese billionaire and Alibaba founder Jack Ma