Jack Ma, billionaire co-founder and previous president From Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, it has reappeared from wherever it has been since late October 2020, when it stopped appearing publicly amid a government crackdown on tech companies.
Per CNN, What was present in a video posted by Tianmu News, a subsidiary of the state-owned state media outlet in Zhenjiang Province, where Alibaba is headquartered in Hangzhou. What appeared through the video link to address the audience at an event organized by the Rural Teacher Initiative for his charitable foundation; Tianmu writes that it was filmed on Wednesday local time. He also appeared briefly in a second video visiting a school near Hangzhou, although The Wall Street Journal reported It was unclear when this was filmed.
In November 2020, Chinese regulators dropped the hammer on Alibaba Group’s Ant Group fintech, forcing it to halt an initial public offering that was expected to raise $ 37 billion and set a world record in Stock sales. It immediately removed about $ 68 billion from Alibaba’s market value. Shanghai Stock Exchange (run through a non-profit corporation Controlled By the Chinese government) For CNN In a statement at the time the IPO was postponed due to “major problems,” which means that Ant Group did not “meet the listing requirements or disclosure requirements,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry She described it as a “self-organizing” issue. The company later received a file Correction command From the People’s Bank of China. Ali Baba is facing now Antitrust investigation Even when you try it Placate the organizers.
A month before the IPO was canceled, Ma criticized regulators for having a “pawnshop mentality” and called for restrictions on borrowing to be lowered, according to News agency, Is in direct contrast to the Chinese government’s efforts to curb debt. His subsequent disappearance from public view has been widely interpreted as the CEO’s attempt to shake off some of the heat he had gained, with much additional speculation that he may have been arrested. The Chinese government’s clear explanations for the campaign ranged between Politically motivated A crushing blow to a billionaire challenging the Chinese Communist Party’s monopoly on power to an unexpected development in the Long batch By Chinese financial and competition watchdogs to focus on sprawling tech giants, as well as concern about the financial risks posed by Ant’s massive IPO.
According to the newspaper, what did not pay off as if he was recording a video clip as a hostage, and the sources told the newspaper that he had chosen to give up his will:
Mr Ma looked relieved and said he was unable to meet teachers in person this year due to the coronavirus pandemic. He said his commitments to education will not change, and added that he hopes to see them in the future.
Another video included in the same Chinese media report showed Mr. Ma about what he said was a recent visit to a primary school in Tonglu County, near Hangzhou, where you and its affiliates are based. It did not specify when Mr. Ma, who appeared in a black hat and a quilted winter jacket, visited the school.
Geoffrey Towson, a former professor at Peking University’s Guanghua School of Management … said, “Mr. Ma’s recent appearance could help clear some unverified rumors about why he has been out of the public eye for months …” It was a necessary answer to Question “Where is Jack Ma?” Professor Towson said. “What he has such a prestigious position, just his absence creates a lot of crazy ideas.”
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Additionally, the newspaper reported that employees at Alibaba and Alipay have celebrated a resurgence of in-house boards.
According to the magazine, the People’s Bank of China indicated that it does not abandon Ma or his companies by issuing draft rules stipulating that non-bank payment companies have a large share of the payments market, either alone or in coordination with a competitor, “It can be considered market dominant and can be dismantled or Facing more regulatory scrutiny. ” Alipay, a subsidiary of Ant Group, processed about $ 17 trillion in digital payments, or just over half of the market, in the first half of 2020.
