Born name

MY YUN

nickname

Jack Ma

Sun sign

scale

Place of birth

Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China

nationality

training

After passing the Chinese entrance exams, Jack Ma was enrolled at the Hangzhou Teacher’s Institute (which was renamed Hangzhou Normal University). He graduated from university with a Bachelor of Arts in English.

He later got admission into Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business and graduated in 2006.

occupation

Entrepreneur, investor and philanthropist

family

• Father – Ma Laifa (musician and storyteller)
• Mother – Cui Wencai (musician and storyteller)
• Siblings – Unknowns

Manager

Jack Ma’s personal management team handles his agency and management work.

Build

Slim

Height

4 feet 11 inches or 152 cm

weight

59 kg or 130 lbs

girlfriend/spouse

Jack Ma has dated

1. Zhang Ying (late 1980s-present) – Jack Ma married Zhang Ying in the late 80s. They first met while studying at Hangzhou Normal University. They got married right after graduating from university. They were both working as teachers at the time. During their marriage, they became parents of two children – a son and a daughter.

race/ethnicity

Asian

hair colour

Schwarz

eye color

Schwarz

sexual orientation

Just

distinguishing features

• Short and light body
• gaunt face

brand promotion

Jack Ma has not yet done any endorsement work for any brand.

Religion

His religious views are not known.

Known for

• As a co-founder of the Chinese multinational technology conglomerate Alibaba Group . He serves as the company’s Executive Chairman.
• Considered one of the richest men in the world with a net worth in excess of $41 billion.
• As a global ambassador of Chinese industry and economy.

first movie

To date, he has not appeared in any movies.

First TV show

Jack Ma hasn’t acted in any TV show until now.

Personal trainer

Jack strives to stay fit and healthy by regularly practicing Chen-style Tai Chi Chuan. He is such a big fan of tai chi that he has hired several experts in the field to teach the discipline to his employees at Alibaba .

For his personal guidance he hired a renowned teacher and martial artist Wáng Xī’an.

Jack Ma favorite things

• Film– Forrest Gump (1994)

Jack Ma Facts

1. He began learning English independently at a young age. He used to practice his English by conversing with speakers at the Hangzhou International Hotel.
2. For nine years, he would cycle 70 miles to show tourists around.
3. He got his well-known name Jack Ma from one of his pen pals who was one of the foreign tourists. His buddy decided to call him Jack as he had a hard time remembering and pronouncing his Chinese name.
4. In his youth, he struggled a little with his studies as he had to sit 4 consecutive years of college entrance exams before finally being admitted to college.
5. After completing his studies, he struggled to find a job as his applications for around 30 different positions were rejected.
6. He once applied for a job at KFC but was rejected after an interview while the other 23 applicants were selected.
7. He realized the power of the internet after an ugly website he created related to China garnered a lot of positive feedback within hours of the website’s launch.
8. His first entrepreneurial venture was a company called China Yellow Pages, which he started with $20,000 and raised with the help of his wife and a friend.
9. Within three years of its official launch, the China Yellow Pages managed to earn around $800,000.
10. In 1998, he was hired to manage an IT company by the China International Electronic Commerce Center under the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation. He quit his job in 1999.
11. In 1999, he moved back to his hometown and founded Alibaba in his apartment. He had teamed up with a group of 18 friends to start the company.
12. After successfully completing a $25 billion IPO on the New York Stock Exchange in September 2014, his company became the first company in history to raise such an amount in an IPO.
13. He has been invited to lecture at prestigious universities such as the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Peking University.
14. In 2007, Jack was the target of criticism and worldwide protests after his company made huge profits from the sale of animal products. Jack announced that shark meat products will not be sold through Alibaba.
15. At the event celebrating the 18th anniversary of Alibaba’s founding in September 2017, he dressed like Michael Jackson and performed on the US pop star hit single Thriller .
16. Ma demonstrated his martial arts skills in the short film, That Night…While We Dream (originally titled Gong shou dao ). It was released in the US in February 2018.
17. In 2017, he was ranked second in Fortune Magazine’s list of the 50 Greatest Leaders in the World.
18. Although he has amassed his fortune due to the immense success of his e-commerce website, he has often stated that he has limited knowledge of the technology and his technical proficiency is limited to sending and receiving emails.
19. He is said to have gotten his first computer at the age of 33.
20. He first heard about the internet in 1994 and was made aware of it by his friends during a visit to the United States in 1995.
21. He doesn’t have a social media account.