Chinese business mogul and Alibaba Group founder Jack Ma, who is under scrutiny from the Chinese government, has not been seen in public for nearly two months.
The business mogul has not been present on social media either. His last post on Twitter was on October 10.
I am honored to partner with His Royal Highness the Duke of Cambridge @KensingtonRoyal and other global leaders and organizations to support the @EarthshotPrize and address 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
According to a recent report by Financial times, Ma was recently replaced as a judge in the finale of the TV show ‘Africa’s Business Heroes’.
The report further stated that “his photograph was removed from the judges’ website, and was conspicuously removed from a promotional video.”
According to the report, the program’s finale took place in November, shortly after Ma “made a sincere speech criticizing China’s regulators and its state banks.”
An Alibaba spokesperson said Financial times that Ma was unable to appear on the show due to a scheduling conflict.
Jack Ma’s absence has been called into question at a time when two of his companies, Alibaba and Ant, have come under scrutiny from the Chinese market regulator for an antitrust investigation.
China’s market watchdog last month launched an investigation into alleged anti-competitive practices by e-commerce firm Alibaba, and also submitted a “rectification plan” for Ant Group, Jack Ma’s fintech company.
A TechCrunch The report in late December said that the People’s Bank of China had convened Ant Group for regulatory talks on December 26, announcing a broad plan for the fintech firm to “rectify” its regulatory violations.
Jack Ma is currently ranked 25th on the list of the world’s richest entrepreneurs according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index with a total net worth of $ 50.6 billion.
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