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SHANGHAI: A senior executive at Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, Jiang Fan, was demoted on charges of inappropriate behavior after an internal investigation, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Jiang, the president of Alibaba, Taobao and Tmall markets, who joined the Chinese e-commerce giant in 2013 and was long considered the potential successor to current CEO Zhang Yong, was removed from a 38-person association, which appoints some board members.
He was also demoted to group vice president from senior group vice president, said the person, who asked not to be identified discussing internal issues.
Alibaba declined to make Jiang available for the interview and did not respond to a request for comment from Reuters.
The decision follows speculation on Chinese social media about Jiang’s relationship with a prominent social media influencer, Zhang Dayi, and whether he had used his influence on Alibaba to ensure preferential treatment for merchants associated with Ruhnn Holding Ltd, an e-commerce company where Zhang serves as chief marketing officer.
A Ruhnn spokesman declined to comment. A representative for Zhang did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In 2016, Alibaba had bought a stake in Ruhnn, which was made public last year.
In its internal investigation, Alibaba concluded that its investment in Ruhnn “has nothing to do with Jiang Fan” and that Ruhnn stores had not benefited from Jiang’s influence, according to a note to all staff seen by the person.
But the note also said that due to “improper handling of family matters,” Jiang had “triggered a serious crisis of public opinion, which had a major impact on the company’s reputation,” according to the memo.
The online fury over Jiang comes as Alibaba recovers from the impact of the coronavirus, which saw deliveries temporarily halt as the country entered a week-long semi-quarantine state across the country.
Jiang had joined Alibaba after selling his app analysis company Umeng to the e-commerce giant and is credited with driving the company’s transition from the desktop to mobile phone shopping.
Some viewed him as a possible successor to current CEO Zhang Yong, who formally took over Alibaba from Jack Ma in 2019.
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