Jack Ma, co-founder of e-commerce and entertainment giant Alibaba had gone missing? He hasn’t been seen in public for two months and even his last online activity on twitter dated Oct 10, 2020.
Speculations were triggered after he failed to make an appearance on “Africa’s Business Heroes“, a TV show that he created. He was also one of the judges. The contestants pitched business ideas to the judging panels and competed for prizes worth US$1.5 million provided by the Jack Ma Foundation.
Jack ma was absent on the TV show’s finale which was held in November and he was replaced by an Alibaba executive. His replacement told Financial Times that the billionaire was unable to take part on the judging panel “due to a scheduling conflict”.
Since then, the public been speculated that Jack Ma could have gone missing.
His last online activity was on Twitter on Oct 10, He tweeted,” I am honored to partner with HRH The Duke of Cambridge & other global leaders and organizations to support the
Earth shot Prize and tackle the environmental challenges.”
I am honored to partner with HRH The Duke of Cambridge @KensingtonRoyal & other global leaders and organizations to support the @EarthshotPrize and tackle the environmental challenges we all face. Together, we can protect our planet from climate change! https://t.co/0ax1imIZMC pic.twitter.com/EN6yissNGI
— Jack Ma (@JackMa) October 10, 2020
On Oct 24, Jack Ma was speaking in front of top government officials at a forum in Shanghai, he sarcastically criticized Beijing’s financial regulation, based on an outdated system.
“There are no systemic financial risks in China because there’s no system in China,” Ma said.
But no one would ever think, few days after the controversial speech by the group’s co-founder and just 2 days before the eagerly awaited market debut in Shanghai and Hong Kong. Ant’s IPO was suspended. It was a costly miscalculation.
Sources close to Ma told Reuters that senior financial regulatory officials were furious at Ma’s comments, one of them describing the speech as a “punch in their faces”.
His whereabouts are being questioned as to his business empire, Ant Group, has come under attack by the Chinese government after his comments challenging China’s regulation system.
Mainstream Chinese media have not carried stories of Ma’s disappearance from public view. Nor have Ant or Alibaba issued press statements or regulatory filings on the matter.
Whether Ma has been detained or is simply doing his best to avoid the limelight, his low profile reflects a growing interference by the Chinese government around the activities of private sector companies.
Info via Financial Times| The Star | Japan Times | Reuters