Jack Ma has been spotted playing golf on the Chinese island of Hainan. The Alibaba founder has spent months laying low amid clashes with regulators
- Jack Ma was spotted playing golf at the Sun Valley Golf Resort, sources told Bloomberg.
- The sources described the Alibaba and Ant Group founder as a golfing novice.
- Ma hasn't been seen in public for more than two months amid a crackdown by Chinese regulators.
After months of speculation over Jack Ma's whereabouts, the billionaire was spotted playing golf at the Sun Valley Golf Resort in Hainan, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg Wednesday.
This is the first public sighting of the Alibaba and Ant Group founder in more than two months. Reports suggested he was laying low on January 5 amid the Chinese Communist party's crackdown on his businesses.
The Sun Valley Golf Resort is located on Hainan Island, just off the coast of China. It's a five-star resort offering a 27-hole course surrounded by a vast green landscape.
One person who saw Ma at the resort described him as a golfing novice, Bloomberg reported.
Alibaba didn't immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.
His last appearance was apparently a virtual one on January 20, when he spoke to 100 teachers in remote areas of China in a videoconference call. This was part of the Jack Ma Rural Teachers Award ceremony, which highlights outstanding teachers in poor and rural areas.
The 56-year-old was thought to be "missing" on January 3 as he hadn't been seen publically in two months and was replaced in November as a judge on the African talent show he founded, "Africa's Business Heroes," the Financial Times reported.
CNBC anchor David Faber said January 5 that Ma "is being less visible, purposefully," citing sources. "He may not have shown up, but he's not missing," Faber said.
The Chinese tech mogul has clashed with the country's regulators over the past few months because of his business antics.
In October, Ma publicly criticized China's financial regulatory system at a conference in Shanghai. He said China was following global rules that are part of "an old people's club" and the rules of global banking aren't well-suited for Chinese tech innovation.
One month later, China introduced stricter regulations that curbed what would have been a huge initial public offering for Ant Group, Ma's fintech company.
Then in December, China launched an antitrust investigation into Ma's e-commerce firm Alibaba over alleged anti-monopolistic practices. Regulators also said they'll push Ant Group to implement strict financial regulations.
Ant Group plans to restructure itself, following the demand from Chinese regulators.
Ultimately, the company will become a financial holding company, overseen by China's central bank, people with knowledge of the matter told The Wall Street Journal in January.