On September 10th, it was the 25th anniversary of the founding of Alibaba. Jack Ma, the founder of Alibaba, posted on Alibaba’s internal network, mentioning that Alibaba has never been a company protected by anyone. In recent years, Jack Ma and his Alibaba company have faced scrutiny from the Chinese Communist Party, and Jack Ma’s words and actions have been closely watched.
Jack Ma expressed gratitude for the trust and support of customers towards Alibaba.
In his message, Jack Ma also stated that Alibaba has never been a company protected by anyone.
His aforementioned remarks spread widely on Mainland China’s Weibo platform, attracting attention from netizens. Many netizens commented on the situation.
One netizen named “XqteR Zhang Sanfeng” said: “Alibaba has been badly hit.”
Some netizens expressed sympathy for the fate of Jack Ma and private enterprises in mainland China. One netizen quoted a market supervision official from Shandong Province who had previously threatened companies by saying, “It’s easy for me to destroy a company even though I don’t have the ability to build one.” This was dubbed a “classic quote.”
In 2020, during a speech in Shanghai, Jack Ma criticized the banking system in mainland China for having a “pawnshop mentality” and regulatory practices that hinder innovation. He openly questioned the Chinese Communist authorities, which led to him being summoned for questioning. His financial technology company, Ant Group, had plans for a dual listing in Hong Kong and Shanghai which were immediately halted. If the IPO had gone through, it would have been the world’s largest at $37 billion.
Afterward, Jack Ma “disappeared.” Ant Group was fined heavily for various “violations” and underwent a series of reforms.
Since Alibaba faced pressure from the Chinese Communist Party, Jack Ma has been in hiding and occasionally appears overseas. Each appearance of his attracts widespread attention on the internet.
On January 12th of this year, “Jack Ma spotted in Paris, France by netizens” trended on mainland China’s social media platforms. At the same time, photos of Jack Ma in Paris also circulated widely on overseas social media platforms.
At that time, mainland Chinese self-media reported that during his visit to Paris, Jack Ma was also seen with the owner of Louis Vuitton and one of the heirs of LV.
In the summer of 2024, Paris is hosting the Olympics, and Alibaba is one of the top 15 major sponsors of the event.
In recent years, Jack Ma has been frequently seen overseas. In February of last year, he appeared in Australia and visited a family of an old friend whom he had known for 43 years.