BEIJING (Reuters) – The absence of Alibaba founder Jack Ma in the past two months, including missing the final episode of a TV show he was scheduled to appear on as a judge, has sparked social media speculation about his whereabouts amid a Chinese regulatory suppression of its vast business empire.
China’s foremost entrepreneur has not appeared in a public setting since a forum in Shanghai in late October where he destroyed China’s regulatory system in a speech that put him on a collision course with officials, resulting in the suspension of a $ 37 billion IPO from Alibaba’s Ant Fintech arm of the group.
The Financial Times reported on Friday that Ma was being replaced as a judge on the last November episode of a game show for entrepreneurs called Africa’s Business Heroes.
An Alibaba spokeswoman told Reuters on Monday that the change was due to a scheduling conflict and declined further comment.
While the coverage of Ma’s absence to the public sparked speculation on Twitter, which has been blocked in China, it was not a significant trending topic on social media in mainland China, where sensitive topics are subject to censorship.
Chinese regulators have focused on Ma’s businesses since his speech in October, including launching an antitrust investigation into Alibaba and ordering Ant to shake up its lending and other consumer finance business, including establishing a separate holding company to meet its capital requirements. comply.
“I think he’s been told to lie,” said Duncan Clark, chairman of Beijing-based tech consultancy BDA China. “This is a pretty unique situation, more related to Ant’s sheer size and financial regulatory sensitivities,” he said.
Hong Kong-listed shares of Alibaba fell 2.15% on Monday.
(Corrects sixth paragraph to show that Ant’s operational restructuring includes the creation of a separate holding company)
Reporting by Tony Munroe and Brenda Goh; Editing by Carmel Crimmins