Jack Ma’s disappearance act fuels speculation over billionaire’s fate

The absence of Alibaba founder Jack Ma from public view for the past two months, including missing the last episode of a TV show he was scheduled to appear on as a judge, has fueled speculation on social media about his whereabouts amid a Chinese regulatory crackdown on his sprawling business. Empire.

The most prominent Chinese entrepreneur has not appeared in a public setting since a forum in late October in Shanghai where he criticized the Chinese regulatory system in a speech that put him on a collision course with officials , resulting in the suspension of an Alibaba ant’s $ 37 billion IPO. Fintech arm of the group.

The Financial Times reported on Friday that Ma was replaced as a judge in the last episode in November of an entrepreneurial game show called Africa’s Business Heroes.

A spokeswoman for Alibaba told Reuters on Monday that the change was due to a scheduling conflict, declining to comment further.

While media coverage of Ma’s absence in public view sparked speculation on Twitter, which is blocked in China, it was not a major trending topic on social media in mainland China, where sensitive topics are subject to censorship.

Chinese regulators have focused on Ma’s activities since her October speech, including launching an antitrust investigation into Alibaba and ordering Ant to shake up its credit and consumer lending activities, including the creation of a separate holding company to meet capital requirements.

“I think he was told to keep a low profile,” said Duncan Clark, chairman of Beijing-based technology consultancy BDA China. “It’s a pretty unique situation, more tied to Ant’s sheer scale and financial regulatory sensitivities,” he said.

Alibaba’s Hong Kong-listed shares fell 2.15% on Monday.