Jack Ma, founder of Alibaba Group, during the opening ceremony of the 3rd China Youth Entrepreneurs Summit on September 25, 2020 in Fuzhou, Fujian province, China.
Lyu Ming | China news service | Getty Images
GUANGZHOU, China – Alibaba founder Jack Ma has emerged after weeks out of the spotlight, sparking speculation about his whereabouts as his companies face greater regulatory scrutiny.
Hong Kong’s listed Alibaba shares rose 5% on news of their reappearance.
In a video posted on Chinese social media, Ma spoke to rural teachers as part of one of his charitable foundation’s initiatives. The annual event, which is usually held in the tourist town of Sanya, sees the Jack Ma Foundation celebrate the achievements of rural teachers who receive financial support.
“Jack Ma attended the online ceremony of the annual Rural Teacher Initiative event on January 20,” said a spokesman for the Jack Ma Foundation.
In October, Ma made some comments that seemed critical to China’s financial regulator.
It was one of the reasons attributed to Chinese regulators having canceled what would have been a record initial public offering from Ant Group, the financial technology giant founded by Ma.