Founder of Alibaba.com and billionaire, Jack Ma, is reportedly missing and under the surveillance of the Chinese government as he has not been in the public eye for over two months.
Suspicions regarding his whereabouts rose when Ma did not appear as a jury member in the final episode of his reality television program, Africa’s Business Heroes. Instead, he was replaced by another Alibaba executive in a program that aired late last November. Jack Ma’s face has also been removed from the Alibaba website.
Alibaba told CNN Business on Monday that Ma “had to miss the finale due to scheduling conflict.” It declined further comment on his whereabouts.
What did Jack Ma say on 24 October?
At a conference in Shanghai on 24 October, Ma publicly criticised Chinese regulators for stifling innovation by being too risk-averse. This statement is what Chinese tech observers suspect landed Ma’s business in trouble with the government.
“What we need is to build a healthy financial system, not systematic financial risks. To innovate without risks is to kill innovation. There’s no innovation without risks in the world.”
Just days after that, Ma and Ant Group executives (An affiliate company of the Chinese Alibaba Group) were summoned by Chinese regulators to conduct “regulatory interviews”. Soon, the Ant Group IPO (Initial public offering) was suspended on the grounds of several issues involving the financial technology regulatory environment.
Chinese authorities launched an anti-monopoly investigation against Alibaba at the end of last December, including asking Ant Group to restructure its operations.
Jack Ma’s last tweet was on 10 October 2020 regarding his partnership with the Duke of Cambridge and other global leaders and organizations to support the EarthshotPrize and tackle the environmental challenges we all face.
The question still stands now, where is Jack Ma?
Also read: Jack Ma Wants His Life Back, Announces Retirement One Year in Advance
