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For Jack Ma, The Cost Of Insubordination Is $11 Billion (And Counting)
Poor Jack Ma.
I mean, not really. Things can't be all that bad if you're the 25th richest person on the planet.
But as far as people who are worth $51 billion go, "poor" Jack Ma.
Jack was informally accused of a crime early last month, and suffice to say most people don't think what he did was any semblance of criminal.
During a speech in late October, Ma suggested China's regulators might be stifling innovation in the country. So, his offense can be loosely described as "opening one's mouth
Yep. It’s good to be King, says Xi… “L’etat, c’est moi”. Etc.
A message to all Chinese up-and-coming entrepreneurs?
Maybe if the appropriate “cut” is paid to Xi and cronies, they will be allowed to continue?
Furthermore, in the scheme of things, this seems less draconian that how China is treating Hong Kong- as the world quietly looks the other way….
This isn’t about money. In China power is the currency that matters and power requires obedience. Jack Ma forgot that he is only a billionaire. In the US that goes a long way. In China it puts you beneath most party officials / bureaucrats.
This does not bode well for the rest of us down the line.
While we spend our time reading Milton Friedman and “Adam Smith goes to Washington” the Chinese revisit the “Art of War”. Maybe they see more benefits from Friedrich List’s “Das nationale System der politischen Ökonomie” than Smith’s invisible hand. Or perhaps Xi just picked up a copy of “The Myth of Capitalism” on Amazon.
Apple removed 39,000 game apps in China last week because the developers could not provide a Chinese license.