Alibaba Jack Ma will unveil his succession plan next week, remains president

BEIJING (Reuters) – Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (BABA.NBillionaire co-founder Jack Ma will announce a succession plan Monday to entrust the reins of his vast empire to a new generation of leaders, but will remain for the moment executive chairman.

Ma will announce his plan for his 54th birthday and the devolution strategy will extend over a significant period of time, reported the South China Morning Post (SCMP) newspaper quoting a company spokesman.

Alibaba declined to comment but highlighted the SCMP's story when asked about Ma's plans.

Ma, who co-founded Alibaba in 1999, stepped down as CEO in 2013. He is currently the company's international representative at major political and business events.

The New York Times reported Friday that Ma would retire from the e-commerce firm on Monday, the former English professor seeking to focus on philanthropy in education.

The third richest person in China with a net worth of $ 36.6 billion, according to the Forbes magazine, quoted by the New York Times, according to which his retirement was not the end of an era.

Although Ma's plan to phase out is an important step, analysts and industry professionals said it was unlikely that his involvement would change significantly.

"I do not think that means much, frankly. He retired from the role of CEO four or five years ago and made a very specific comment about the desire of the youngest to lead the company, "said Kevin Carter, founder of the Fund's Internet Exchange Emerging Markets.

Ma oversees a number of charitable projects in the areas of education and the environment. It is a cult figure of China's Internet industry and has attracted a large number of entrepreneurs and pop culture. At events, he often meets screaming fans.

TRICKY TIME

Ma has an important international profile, frequently inviting world leaders to the company's headquarters in Hangzhou. Last year, he met with US President Donald Trump, who described him as "intelligent" and "open-minded".

Alibaba was founded by 18 people led by Ma. China's largest e-commerce firm now has more than 66,000 full-time employees, according to the company's latest annual ranking.

The company had a market value of about $ 420 billion at Friday. My control also includes Ant Financial, which was valued at about $ 150 billion after a recent fundraiser.

Succession plans are coming at a difficult time for Chinese technology companies. Authorities have increasingly sought to regulate the sector where Alibaba and its main competitor, Tencent Holdings Ltd (0700.HK) are fighting for consumers.

Trade tensions are also a new challenge for Chinese technology companies, especially those that, like Alibaba, are growing rapidly overseas.

This year regulators have rejected a $ 1.2 billion offer for MoneyGram International Inc. MG.O money transfer service from Ant Financial for reasons of national security, related to "geopolitical" changes.

Ma's decision also comes as US police investigate an allegation of rape against Richard Liu, chief of the rival of electronic commerce JD.com Inc. (JD.O), who hammered his actions.

Liu was arrested and released without charge in Minneapolis last week. Through his lawyers, he has denied any wrongdoing.

Liu is president and CEO of JD.com, and the incident has scared investors because the company does not have a clear succession plan.