China’s richest man and the poster boy for Chinese entrepreneurship, Jack Ma, has officially retired, reports the BBC. Ma cofounded Alibaba in 1999 when he was just 35 years old. Since then the company has become one of the largest and most well-known tech giants on the planet with an estimated valuation of $480 billion.
Alibaba also made Ma China’s richest person with an estimated net worth of $38.6 billion. Ma’s retirement isn’t a surprise. Exactly one year ago today, Ma announced he would retire on his 55th birthday. He also announced that most of his time and wealth after his retirement will be devoted to philanthropy and education through the Jack Ma Foundation.
So how does China’s richest man celebrate his birthday and his retirement on the same day? The Guardian says Ma has rented out an Olympic-size sports stadium in Hangzhou, where he founded Alibaba, to celebrate with his friends. Before founding Alibaba, Ma was an English teacher. In a video posted on Monday, Ma said: “I’m the person always looking forward. I don’t want to look at the things back.”
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