Educational Qualification:

B.A. in English from Hangzhou Normal University and then graduated from Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business (CKGSB).

Background

He is the Founder and Executive Chairman of Alibaba Group, a conglomerate of Internet-based businesses.

He has become a global icon in business and entrepreneurship, one of the world's most influential businessmen, a philanthropist known for expounding his philosophy of business, and a leading innovation visionary.

Style of work:

Started his career as a lecturer then tried his hands on different professions. Finally in 1995 landed in a website designing profession. In 1999, founded Alibaba, a China-based business-to-business marketplace site.

Provides support for genuine goods sellers by creating an Online IP Protection and Complaint System.

Customized & Proactive anti-counterfeit cooperation - Launched Taobao IPR reporting system in 2011.

Awards and Recognition

In September 2005, World Economic Forum selected Ma as a "Young Global Leader".

Fortune Magazine selected him as one of the "25 Most Powerful Businessperson in Asia".

In 2007, Businessweek selected him as the "Businessperson of the Year"

Barron's chose him as one of the 30 "World’s Best CEOs" in 2008.

In May 2009, Time magazine selected Ma as one of the world’s 100 most powerful people.

In 2010, Ma was selected by Forbes Asia as one of Asia’s Heroes of Philanthropy for his contribution to disaster relief and poverty.

Ma was awarded an honorary Doctoral degree by the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology in November 2013.

In 2015, Asian Award honoured him with the Entrepreneur of the Year award.

In 2017, Fortune ranked Ma second on its World's 50 Greatest Leaders list.

In 2017, a KMG survey ranked Ma third in global tech innovation visionary survey.

In October 2017, Ma was given an honorary degree of Doctor of Science in Technopreneurship from De La Salle University Manila, Philippines.

Best Remembered for:

He is one of China's richest men, as well as one of the wealthiest people in Asia, with a net worth of US$47.8 billion, as of November 2017.

Executive chairman of Alibaba Group, which is a Holding company with nine major subsidiaries: Alibaba.com, Taobao Marketplace, Tmall, eTao, Alibaba Cloud Computing, Juhuasuan, 1688.com, AliExpress.com and Alipay.

Trivia

Ma practices Chen-style Tai Chi Chuan, a Chinese martial art.

He is an environmentalist.