In October 2020 Chinese news and media were all over the disappearance of one of the country’s wealthiest men, Jack Ma. As of Jan 20, 2021, Jack Ma (Ma Yun) is estimated to have a net worth of $50.6 billion. His greatest asset is the e-commerce giant Alibaba, which itself along with its branch and children companies is worth around $480 billion.
This sudden disappearance of Jack Ma evoked a lot of rumors and speculations because of his rash comments made against Chinese Banking and Finance Systems just a few days before he vanished from the public scene. Allegedly, such comments infuriated the ruling government officials and a thorough background check was levied on Alibaba’s finances and assets. Between this chaos, common people labeled Jack Ma by mocking titles like Evil Capitalist, Villian, and more. Initial estimates were that he was personally kept under house arrest by the government, like a few other notable personalities who mocked reforms and methods of ruling government.
But on Jan 20, 2021, Jack Ma re-appeared in front of the public eye when he addressed a Webinar to host the achievements of rural educators in China. This whole saga of disappearance and re-appearance has sprung up various talks for and against the government.
This whole incident has divided people and no clear winner seems to emerge. But, for now, it is safe to state that China is still adhering to the strict democratic and communist policies laid by its founding fathers. China is the world’s second-largest economy and sustaining such a vast financial dominance is only possible if both the Government and Business Moguls who source the nation’s GDP are in agreement.