A long-lasting connection
Alibaba founder Jack Ma was one of the first foreign business heavyweights to meet with Donald Trump following his election victory.
In contrast to President Trump, Ma is an advocate for global trade, and says the best advertisement for globalisation is the success of one company trading with another, and hiring more people in the process.
By expanding into Australasia, Ma said Alibaba was making it easy for our businesses “to do business anywhere”.
At the opening of Alibaba’s Australasian office, Ma described the region as one he holds a long connection with.
“Australia will always have a special place in my heart and that’s why I’m so pleased to come back to contribute to supporting Australian businesses and create opportunities and jobs in a country that has meant so much for me.”
China’s richest man electrified a luncheon for former Prime Minister John Key in Beijing last April when he thanked New Zealand “for your benefit to the whole planet”.
He revealed then that 20 of Ma’s former colleagues at China’s e-commerce giant loved New Zealand so much they have retired here.
In the 1980s when Ma was 12 years old, he introduced himself to Australian Ken Morley — who was visiting China on a family holiday — in an effort to improve his English.
Ma befriended Morley’s son, who subsequently brought him to Newcastle in Australia on his first international trip.
Ma has said the time spent in Australia when he was young changed his view of China and its relationship with the world. “I am very thankful for Australia and the time I spent there in my youth. The culture, the landscape and most importantly its people had a profound positive impact on my view of the world at that time,” he said.
Last month Ma, who according to Forbes is worth US$28.2 billion and is the second wealthiest man in China, gave A$26.4 million to establish a scholarship at the University of Newcastle.
The Ma & Morley Scholarship Programme will help establish networks between the two countries, as well as provide practical training to equip beneficiaries for leadership in the global environment.