Alibaba founder Jack Ma ceased to be a director of Alibaba Group with immediate effect, in accordance with a series of succession arrangements made two years ago, according to an announcement of Alibaba's annual general meeting on September 30.
In September 2018, Jack Ma announced in an employee letter that he would no longer be chairman of the board of Alibaba Group on the occasion of Alibaba's 20th anniversary in 2019 and would be succeeded by Zhang Yong.
Jack Ma said at the time that he would remain on the board until Alibaba's annual shareholder meeting in 2020 for the smooth transition of the organization.
Zhang Yong took over as chairman and CEO of Alibaba Group a year ago.
With Jack Ma stepping down from Ali's board, as he had promised, the transition has been a smooth one for Alibaba.
Jack Ma is, as he promised, "always be the No. 1 employee and partner of Alibaba".
This year, the Jack Ma Foundation has been one of the most important forces behind Alibaba's global efforts to fight the epidemic and support the resumption of small businesses.
Jack Ma is also following a long-standing desire to devote more of his energy to philanthropy and education, including efforts to promote rural education, environmental protection, youth and entrepreneurship development in Africa, and support for women.
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