7 Takeaways From Our Investigation Into a Secret Investor in Jack Ma’s Companies

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No businessman in China was more successful, famous or rich than Jack Ma, whose magic touch turned companies like Alibaba into international juggernauts. He was also unafraid to cross the Chinese authorities, insisting he would not do business with them. But an investigation by The New York Times and The Wire China found that another Chinese businessman, with deep connections to relatives of China’s political elite, had been secretly investing in Mr. Ma’s companies. Through a network of shell companies and stand-ins, that businessman, Xiao Jianhua, entered into deals in Mr. Ma’s companies over a period of five years, the investigation found. Mr. Xiao, a billionaire, is now in detention serving a 13-year-sentence for bribery and corruption, a high-profile target in President Xi Jinping’s dramatic consolidation of power. Mr. Ma, for his part, has all but retreated from public life, having no formal role in the companies he founded. A lawyer for Alibaba said that Mr. Ma “never had any business relationship with Mr. Xiao,” and that “the connections you claim to exist do not have any basis in fact.” Two of Mr. Ma’s major partners said they had looked and found no links to Mr. Xiao.