SURPRISE: Jack Ma from Alibaba released as a member of the Communist Party

Jack Ma, creator of the Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group, and the richest person in the country, was unmasked by the official media as a member of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Speculation about Ma's ties to the Chinese government has long been discussed, although he has often kept his distance from Beijing in his public comments.

And while his online trading company had previously raised money by selling shares to CCP-related companies, Ma described his relationship with the government as follows: "Love them, but do not marry them."

But Monday, People's Daily, a government newspaper, wrote that the CCP would honor 100 people, including Ma and two other tycoons of information technology, for their contribution to the Chinese economy.

The publication specifically mentioned Ma as a "member of the CCP" and said Ma was listed as "a powerful driver of domestic demand" at the head of the Alibaba group.

Under his leadership, Alibaba ranks among the top 10 global companies in terms of market value, making China a major player in the e-commerce, internet finance and cloud computing industries, generating many entrepreneurs and start-ups, "The People's Daily wrote, citing a statement from the government regarding the price.

The article also quotes Robin Li, CEO of Baidu, China's leading search engine, and Pony Ma, chairman of Internet giant Tencent Holdings, among the recipients of this honor. The article specifically mentions Li and Ma as "non-partisan".

Bill Bishop, publisher of Chinese newspaper Sinocism, said the revelation regarding Ma was not surprising for those who followed the success of Alibaba's catapult on the global market.

"No one doubted that Alibaba needed to be close to the CCP to survive," Bishop told Business Insider, though he noted that other Chinese tech moguls were able to create successful companies without promising their support.

Bishop added that although Ma has decided to step down as president of the e-commerce giant in September 2019, the revelation of his close ties with the Chinese government is likely to continue through Alibaba.

"This is another reminder that Alibaba must be close to the CCP and considering how President Xi Jinping is pushing the party in all aspects of business and life," Bishop said. will give ammunition that regulators already worried about Chinese companies. "