BEIJING, March 27 (Reuters) – The founder of Alibaba (9988.HK), Jack Ma, has returned to China, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported Monday. the sober mood of China’s private companies.
Ma, one of China’s best-known entrepreneurs, left mainland China in late 2021 and has been seen in photos in Japan, Australia and Thailand in the months since.
Once one of the country’s most outspoken businessmen, he retreated from the public spotlight in late 2020 after criticizing China’s regulatory system, which was later blamed for triggering a wide-ranging regulatory crackdown by Beijing.
While Chinese authorities said in recent months they had ended the crackdown and would look into ways to support the private sector, Chinese entrepreneurs said they saw Ma’s decision to stay abroad as a factor hampering confidence.
Shares of Alibaba in Hong Kong rose more than 4% after the release of the SCMP report.
The SCMP report did not say when Ma had returned to China, but said, citing sources, that he attended a school he founded in the city of Hangzhou, home to Alibaba and the financial technology company Ant Group.
It added that he was returning to China after a brief stop in Hong Kong.
Alibaba did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The school, Yungu Education, said on its WeChat account Monday that Ma had visited its premises and posted both photos and a video of Alibaba’s founder at the school.
Ma also recently relinquished control of Ant Group, a Chinese fintech giant, in an overhaul that seeks to draw a line under broader regulatory scrutiny.
Reporting by Beijing Newsroom; Edited by Gerry Doyle and Muralikumar Anantharaman
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Principles of Trust.
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