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BEIJING: The absence of Alibaba founder Jack Ma from public view in the past two months, including the loss of the final episode of a TV show in which he was to appear as a judge, has fueled speculation on social media on his whereabouts amid a Chinese regulatory crackdown on its expanding business empire.
China’s highest-profile businessman has not appeared on public stage since a forum in late October in Shanghai, where he criticized China’s regulatory system in a speech that put him on a collision course with officials, resulting on the suspension of an initial public offering of Alibaba shares worth $ 37 billion. Fintech arm of Ant Group.
The Financial Times reported on Friday that Ma was replaced as a judge on the final November episode of a game show for entrepreneurs called Africa’s Business Heroes.
An Alibaba spokeswoman told Reuters on Monday the change was due to a scheduling conflict, declining to comment further.
While news coverage of Ma’s absence from public view sparked speculation on Twitter, which is blocked in China, it was not a significant trending topic on social media in mainland China, where sensitive topics are subject to censorship.
Chinese regulators have focused on Ma’s business since his October speech, including launching an antitrust investigation into Alibaba and Ant’s order to separate its loan business from its online payments division.
“I think he has been told to stay low,” said Duncan Clark, president of Beijing-based technology consultancy BDA China. “This is quite a unique situation, more tied to the magnitude of Ant and the sensitivities about financial regulation,” he said.
Alibaba shares listed in Hong Kong fell 2.15% on Monday.
