Jack Ma was on the verge of becoming the richest man in China but suddenly disappeared after another commercial success in November 2020.
His company Alibaba started as an online store from his apartment and then became one of the world's largest tech companies.
Today, about 800 million people are using the service. His company's services include online shopping, cloud computing and artificial intelligence.
Jack Ma is considered a public relations expert and was seen performing public stunts. He also holds parties for thousands of his employees and praises the services of his employees in songs.
His most recent project is Brick Group. It is a digital payments market in China that uses a finance app called AliPay.
Controversial speech
Jack Ma's company aims to revolutionize the banking sector in China and transfer financial monopolies from traditional institutions to the people.
On October 24, Ant Group was ready to launch the world's largest IPO on the Shanghai Stock Exchange.
Earlier, Jack Ma delivered a controversial speech at a high-profile event criticizing the Chinese financial system.
He then disappeared from public view again until mid-January. Meanwhile, rumors have been circulating that he may be under house arrest or may have been imprisoned. Some even questioned whether Jack Ma was still alive.
High level summons
The founder of Alibaba had accused the Chinese bank and claimed that when it came to running the world of new digital finance, the authorities were using the method of running the railway station to run the airport.
Such statements provoked the banking establishment in the country and reportedly drew the attention of President Xi Jinping.
Jack Ma and his close associates were soon summoned by regulators. Shares of his brick group were barred from selling in the market.
Shares of Jack Ma's company plummeted to about 76 billion. Jack Ma was nowhere to be seen after the meeting.
'Big surprise'
Analyst who interviewed Jack Ma in the past, Christina Bauterp, said that Jack Ma had apparently crossed the line of sight that day. "I think it was a big surprise for them," he said. They would never have crossed this red line if they had known that the end could be so bad.
Jack Ma finally reappeared earlier this year on January 20, in the form of a short video of his speech at a charity event.
Boutrip says he was then seen playing golf on the Chinese island of Hainan in February.
"They didn't reveal themselves in public and it was definitely the best thing they could do."
Extensive technology sector
The Chinese government is currently reviewing its approach to regulating major technology companies and has launched an investigation into the monopoly in Alibaba.
Last week, a watchdog said it had fined 12 companies, including Tensit and Baidu. These companies were fined for violating the tenancy agreements.
China is being criticized internationally for its policies in Hong Kong and Xinjiang by other countries, including the United States.
The move to rein in technology superpowers is seen by some as an attempt to control success on a commercial basis and stabilize priorities.
"There are (Communist Party) committees that remind companies that the party has the ultimate power over powerful people like Jack Ma," said Samantha Hoffman, a researcher at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute.
"Not only is the company responsible for everything that the party (the Communist Party) demands, but they can't even acknowledge any of their actions if they are not told to," he said.
But another expert says Alibaba and other Chinese technology companies should not be viewed entirely from the West's political point of view.
"China is still a developing country," said Lillian Lee, author of a newsletter on Chinese technology. I think it would be unfair to judge a developing country on the same merits as a developed country.
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