Jack Ma

Ma Yun (Chinese: 马云, [mà y̌n]; born September 10, 1964), known professionally as Jack Ma, is a Chinese business magnate who is the founder and executive chairman of Alibaba Group, a family of Internet-based businesses. He is currently the richest person in Asia and the 14th richest in the world, with a net worth of US$41.8 billion, as of June 2017. He has become a global icon in business and entrepreneurship, one of the world's most influential businessmen, and a philanthropist known for expounding his philosophy of business. He was ranked 2nd in Fortune's 2017 "World's 50 Greatest Leaders" list. 2Early life Ma was born in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China. Ma started to study English at a young age and practiced English daily by conversing with English-speakers at Hangzhou hotel, a 40 minute bike ride from his home. He would give them tours around the city for free to improve his English. He did this for nine years. He became pen pals with one of those foreigners, who nicknamed him "Jack" because he found it hard to pronounce his Chinese name. Later in his youth, Ma struggled to attend colleg