Alibaba founder Jack Ma has not appeared in public since October, following public criticism of the Chinese government.

However, Ma is not the first successful Chinese billionaire to face attacks from the government.

In 2018, Wu Xiaohui, who founded the Anbang insurance agency, was convicted of fraud and abuse of power and sentenced to 18 years in prison.

In March, billionaire Ren Zhiqian disappeared after writing a critical essay on how China has handled Covid-19 and called the prime minister a "clown."

Bill Bishop, author of the newspaper Sinocism in China, wrote that with Jack Ma, “the party has once again reminded all private entrepreneurs that no matter how rich and successful you are, it can pull the carpet under your feet in every moment".

Currently, it is thought that the most reliable information is that "Jack Ma has left to divert attention from the political problems that his business is going through."

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Source: The Guardian