Jack Ma and Joe Tsai, the co-founders of Alibaba, collectively invested 200 million USD in shares of the e-commerce giant.

According to a January 23 report by The New York Times, Jack Ma acquired 50 million USD worth of Alibaba shares on the Hong Kong exchange during the fourth quarter of 2023. Simultaneously, Blue Pool, the asset management fund chaired by Joe Tsai, disclosed a purchase of nearly 2 million Alibaba shares listed in the US, amounting to 152 million USD for the last quarter.

This development resulted in an 8% surge in Alibaba shares on the New York Stock Exchange on January 23, and as of today, the stock is up by 4% on the Hong Kong exchange. However, Alibaba shares have faced a 5.5% decline on the Hong Kong exchange since the beginning of the year.

In November, Alibaba announced that Jack Ma’s asset management fund intended to divest 10 million Alibaba shares valued at 871 million USD.

Jack Ma, who has maintained a low profile since his 2020 speech criticizing the Chinese financial system, resigned as Chairman of Alibaba in 2019 and departed from the Board of Directors in 2020, relinquishing daily operational involvement. Despite this, he continues to exert significant influence over the corporation.

Alibaba, a major player in Chinese e-commerce, is undergoing a reformative phase. Last November, the company abandoned its plan to segregate the cloud computing segment due to uncertainties linked to US export restrictions on AI-related technology. This decision was part of a broader strategy announced in March 2023 to divide the group into six subsidiaries.

In the e-commerce domain, Alibaba is grappling with intense competition from Pinduoduo, and the post-pandemic retail recovery in China is progressing more slowly than anticipated, further pressuring Alibaba.

In December 2023, the company revealed that CEO Eddie Wu would concurrently serve as the CEO of e-commerce, shortly after assuming leadership of the cloud computing division.