SHANGHAI: Jack Ma stepped aside yesterday as chairman of Alibaba, ending a spectacularly successful 20-year run during which the charismatic former English teacher’s e-commerce company left a profound impact on China’s economy. Ma, who turned 55 yesterday, handed the reins of the company he co-founded to a team of executives led by CEO Daniel Zhang. Ma intends to put his $41 billion fortune toward philanthropic projects such as education.
His departure marks a new era for a company that tapped into China’s deep reservoir of consumer spending, creating new opportunities for countless businesses large and small, and helping cement the internet’s central role in Chinese daily life. His fluent English, globetrotting, and playful antics — he channelled Michael Jackson in a dance routine two years ago — shattered the dry image of the Chinese business executive, presenting a charismatic face to the world.
“His background as an English teacher, allied to his raw charisma including a keen sense of humour have cemented his place … as the face of Chinese entrepreneurs overseas,” said Duncan Clark, author of “Alibaba: The House That Jack Ma Built.” “His influence as a symbol of Chinese entrepreneurship is unparalleled.” Ma’s departure comes not only on his birthday but, fittingly, on Teacher’s Day in China.
Alibaba also staged its 20th-anniversary bash yesterday evening. Alibaba has provided few details on Ma’s participation or whether there will be a formal handover ceremony. Ma was a cash-strapped entrepreneur when someone showed him the internet on a 1990s trip to the United States. He launched various internet-related business projects in China that met mixed success before convincing a group of Chinese and foreign friends to give him $60,000 to start a business-to-business e-commerce venture called Alibaba in 1999. Today, Alibaba towers over Chinese e-commerce with more than half of domestic market share, international ambitions, and a dominant position in digital payments through affiliate Ant Financial. US-listed Alibaba is now among the world’s most valuable companies, worth $462 billion, according to Bloomberg data. – AFP
