Background
Who does not know about Alibaba and its creator Jack Ma. Recently, the entrepreneur went missing from the public eye for months.
Speculations were raised if the Chinese government had something to do with Jack Ma’s disappearance.
Eventually, a consensus was made that the companies being owned and/or promoted by Jack Ma had the potential to blossom into digital banks.
A rationale was arrived among the thinkers all over the world that the Chinese government would not allow any entity to compete with its stranglehold.
Further, IPOs (Initial Public Offers) of his companies was delayed on one pretext or another.
The consequence
All these actions have taken their toll on the man’s wealth.
Jack Ma lost the title as the richest man of China all the while his peers’ progress continued without any adverse conditions which Jack Ma had to face.
The list is prepared by Hurun Global Rich List and Jack Ma was at the top from his country for two consecutive years 2019 and 2020.
Currently, the man is in fourth place.
The entrepreneurs that are ahead him are Zhong Shanshan, Pony Ma, and Collin Huang.
Hurun Global Rich List confirms the suspicions
The report too confirmed what the media had been inferring from months claiming Jack Ma lost his wealth and the position as the number one wealthiest man in China "after China's regulators reined in Ant Group and Alibaba on anti-trust issues."
What initiated this game of chase?
On October 23, 2020 Jack Ma made the mistake of criticising his government’s regulatory system.
In the opinion of this author, every educated and internationally-aware individual knows the temperament of the government and the nation of China.
Though the same has enabled China to be a mass producer at exceedingly cheap prices, but this also entails a certain level of servitude and lack of freedom and autonomy.
Jack Ma’s wealth could have fooled him into thinking that his businesses, assets, wealth, and the resultant clout makes him immune to counter-action from the Chinese government.
In other words, the Chinese government is not to be meddled with, whether the poke is domestic or foreign.