Jack Ma leaves Alibaba

Jack Ma, co-founder and chairman of Alibaba, China’s largest online retailer, leaves the company on Tuesday.

Known as the face of the company, Jack Ma spoke about his retirement plans for the first time in September last year, on his 54th birthday, to focus his efforts on charity and education. According to the announcement, Alibaba’s stock price fell nearly 4 percent on the New York Stock Exchange, and just two days later it has reached its previous value, which is a tangible sign of Jack Ma’s close ties with the company he founded. Moreover, in Chinese corporate culture, it is extremely unusual for founders to retire at such a young age. (MTI, Nagy Mariann)