Jack Ma resurfaces in new video after an nearly 3-month ‘disappearance’
- by Nick Cohen
- in Industry
- — Jan 21, 2021
His remarks are said to have infuriated Beijing's party brass, leading to Chinese President Xi Jinping to personally order a halt to the offering by Alibaba's financial affiliate company, Ant Financial, which was set to raise United States dollars 34 billion in the biggest stock-market debut in history.
In the 50-second video, Ma congratulated teachers supported by his foundation and made no mention of his disappearance or official efforts to tighten control over Alibaba and other internet companies over the past six months. Ma himself started out as an English teacher before going on to found Alibaba, which is now one of the world's most valuable companies with a market value of almost $700 billion.
China's most recognizable entrepreneur addressed scores of teachers on an online conference Wednesday, part of an annual event the billionaire hosts to recognize the achievements of rural educators. It was not clear from the video or the Tianmu News article where he was speaking from.
The 56-year-old was seen addressing rural teachers via video conference.
Ma's re-emergence may help quell persistent rumors about his fate while Beijing pursues investigations into online finance titan Ant Group and Alibaba Group Holding.
Alibaba rose 5% after Jack Ma resurfaced in a videoconference on Wednesday after weeks of laying low.
"Today's financial system is the legacy of the Industrial Age". He appealed to them to make it easier for entrepreneurs and young people to borrow. It is to be noted that Jack Ma is facing a regulatory clampdown by Chinese authorities on his business empire. The central bank and other regulators have ordered Ant to overhaul its business before its market debut can go ahead.
"Every year for the past five years have come to Sanya to recognize our teachers, show gratitude to our teachers and respect our teachers", Ma said in the video. He also continues to mentor management talent in the "Alibaba Partnership", a 35-member group of company managers. Ant began as a payments service for Alibaba, the world's biggest online retail company, and evolved over time as one of the world's biggest online financial services companies, offering such services as loans, investing and insurance.
