Chinese billionaire and philanthropist Jack Ma has been appointed an honorary business professor at the University of Hong Kong.
The University made the announcement on Friday, April 21, 2023, saying that the Alibaba founder will serve for a period of three years. His focus will be on education and corporate innovation.
Ma, who is a graduate of Hangzhou Normal University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English education, has previously been awarded several honorary doctorates from several universities, including the University of Hong Kong, Tel Aviv University, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, National Taiwan Normal University, and De La Salle University.
He has been keeping a low profile since 2020 after he made a speech criticising China for lacking a financial ecosystem. In his speech, he likened Chinese banks to “pawn shops”, where collateral and guarantees are the hard currencies.
Since then, he has kept off the public after the government dealt a blow to his planned initial public offering for Alibaba affiliate Ant Group.
Shivani Siroya: Meet founder and CEO of Tala Loan App worth billions
A fine of USD2.7 billion (Sh. 369 billion according to the current exchange rate of Sh. 134 per Dollar) was also imposed on Alibaba for what was termed as “unfair business practices”.
Despite reports that Ma is not “interested” in public lectures, the Jack Ma Foundation said that “after a hiatus from the world of education, Mr Ma looks forward to returning to campus life”.
The Foundation, confirming the news of his appointment, said that Ma’s work will be highly compatible with Ma’s entrepreneurial experience and philosophy.