Jack Ma reportedly made a surprise visit to Ant Group's headquarters in one of his few public appearances since China pulled the firm's $35 billion IPO
- Jack Ma made a rare appearance at Ant Group's headquarters, Reuters reports.
- His visit would be one of the few he's made since China pulled Ant's $35 billion IPO.
- Ma was reportedly seen on a campus shuttle bus and was smiling.
Jack Ma visited Ant Group's headquarters in Hangzhou, China, according to Reuters.
The visit was during the fintech company's annual "Ali Day" festivities that celebrate all Alibaba employees and their families. Ant Group is an affiliate company of the conglomerate Alibaba.
He was seen on a campus shuttle bus with other Alibaba executives and was smiling, according to a photo taken by an employee and viewed by Reuters.
The appearance comes as the billionaire founder continues to fly under the radar following China's yanking of Ant's would-be $35 billion IPO last fall. Ma criticized the nation's banking rules in October, prompting China to take action. News later surfaced that Chinese President Xi Jinping personally instructed authorities to look into Ant after the comments were made.
Ma kept far out of the public eye shortly after, leading many to speculate that he may be missing, possibly even captured or taken by the Communist Party. But other reports suggested that Ma was not missing and was simply lying low on purpose as China clamped down on both Ant Group and Alibaba - the nation introduced new regulations in the tech sector to prevent companies from engaging in anticompetitive behavior. The government would later fine Alibaba what equals $2.8 billion USD over concerns that it was abusing its dominant market position.
Ma later appeared in an online video as part of a teacher appreciation event in late January. It was the first time he was seen in the two-and-a-half months since Ant Group's pulled IPO.
China may be cracking down on Ma's companies, but the nation is working to rein in its economy and its billionaires at large as a widening wealth gap threatens the Party's socialist principles. Besides the US, China has the most billionaires - 626 - in the world.