Alibaba Group founder Jack Ma lost about $ 3.6 billion on December 24 after the announcement of an antitrust probe in China plunged the e-commerce giant’s prices.
Forbes magazine, which puts Ma at 19th place on its Real-Time Billionaires list with assets valued at $ 57.3 billion, estimates that his fortune decreased by 5.87%, or $ 3.6 billion, from the previous trading day.
China’s State Administration for Market Regulation announced on December 24 that the Alibaba group will be investigated for “alleged monopolistic conduct,” which is manifested in particular in an “exclusivity agreement” that forces traders to reject alternatives to this online buying and selling platform.
This news led Alibaba’s securities to fall by 8.1% on the Hong Kong stock exchange and 13.3% on Nasdaq.
The launch of an antitrust investigation is Alibaba’s second major setback in the past two months.
In early November, Chinese authorities suspended the listing of Alibaba’s subsidiary, Ant Group in Shanghai and Hong Kong. The official statement, issued just 48 hours before what was to be the largest initial public offering, alleged that the company of which Jack Ma is the largest individual shareholder does not meet the new listing or disclosure requirements.