Jack Ma's Disappearance: Twitter Reacts to Absence

Global interest is focused on the location of Jack Ma following reports that the billionaire co-founder of Alibaba and Ant Group has not been seen publicly since the latter part of October.

On October 24th, Ma publicly criticized China’s regulatory practices concerning finance during a speech to a group of prominent government figures. Shortly after, Chinese authorities unexpectedly suspended Ant’s planned initial public offering, a decision widely believed to be connected to Ma’s contentious statements. The Chinese government then instructed the large financial technology company, which had operated within a comparatively unregulated framework, to “correct” its operations in accordance with legal requirements. The long-term viability of Ant remains uncertain.

At the same time, Chinese regulatory bodies have initiated an extensive investigation into Alibaba regarding potential anti-competitive practices.

Ma is well-known for his expressive nature and enjoyment of public attention, so his absence from recent occasions, including the concluding installment of an African television show he developed, is generating significant discussion. A wide range of individuals, from economic analysts to members of the press, have been following the situation closely on social media:

According to an Alibaba representative, “Mr. Ma was unable to participate in the finale of the Africa’s Business Heroes competition due to a prior scheduling commitment.”

Although China’s equivalent of Twitter, Weibo, has not censored searches for “Jack Ma missing,” the resulting posts have received minimal engagement in terms of likes and shares. On other platforms within China’s internet landscape, users are hypothesizing within WeChat groups that Ma was either “disappeared” or has left the country.

It is important to remember that Ma had already reduced his involvement in the daily management of Alibaba. In September 2019, he formally transferred the position of chairman to his designated successor, Daniel Zhang. Nevertheless, Ma continues to exert substantial influence over the e-commerce enterprise as a permanent partner within the Alibaba Partnership, a collective of high-level executives who have the power to appoint a majority of the company’s board of directors.

It is not uncommon for prominent Chinese business leaders to maintain a low profile during challenging periods. Following accusations of sexual assault against him, Richard Liu, the outspoken founder of JD.com, a major competitor to Alibaba, did not attend a significant political event in China last year. Pony Ma, the founder of Tencent, who generally avoids public exposure, has also been out of the public eye for approximately a year, reportedly due to ongoing “back issues,” as reported by TechCrunch, and has participated in events remotely through pre-recorded audio messages.