Sign up for Next China, a weekly email where the nation is now and where it will go next.
Alibaba and Ant co-founder Jack Ma has resurfaced after months out of public view, dispelling intense speculation about the situation of the billionaire facing intense scrutiny over his Internet empire. .
The most renowned businessman in China addressed about twenty teachers at an online conference on Wednesday, as part of an annual event hosted by the billionaire to recognize the achievements of rural educators. His appearance, which was first reported on a local blog, was confirmed by people familiar with the matter.
Ma’s comeback may help stifle lingering rumors about his fate as Beijing continues to investigate online finance headline Ant Group Co. i Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. The executive had been out of public eye since early November, when Chinese regulators torpedoed Ant’s $ 35 billion IPO, tightened fintech technology regulations, then ordered a Ant review and launched a separate antitrust probe on Alibaba, all within a matter of days.
The assault on Ma’s billion-dollar corporate empire encompasses a broader campaign to curb a generation of Chinese tech giants that Beijing now considers exercises too much control over the world’s No. 2 economy. The barrage of action against its twin companies drove home as Beijing has lost patience with the enormous power of its technology moguls, now perceived as a threat to the political and financial stability that most rewards President Xi Jinping. .
Read more: Jack Ma stays calm after the spectacular undoing of Ant Group