No apologies for returning to Jack Ma and Alibaba following overnight developments in HK. Their importance are two fold; first, how China is dealing with Ma/Alibaba + second, what it means for China’s construction of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics.
Pan Gongsheng, the Vice Governor of the Bank of China, increasing the pressure on Ma, publicly accused Alibaba’s payments arm of “regulatory failings”.
The Company’s shares have fallen by 25% since late October and personal wealth of Ma is estimated to have fallen from $62bn to $49.3bn.
Alibaba will now have to return to its origins as a payment service provider and withdraw from many of its valuable consumer credit and wealth management operations. Zhejiang Province, where Ma commenced his business operations, confirmed that they had interviewed company staff + taken documents from Alibaba’s HQ.
China is feeling its way towards a balance in its dealing with the Billionaires. It is a power struggle which the Party will not allow itself to lose. That is the nature of the Chinese system.
More Billionaires but More Control as well.
