| Net Worth: | $24.5 Billion |
|---|---|
| Age: | 59 |
| Born: | October 15, 1964 |
| Gender: | Male |
| Height: | 1.61 m (5 ft 3 in) |
| Country of Origin: | China |
| Source of Wealth: | Founder of Alibaba |
| Last Updated: | Jun 26, 2024 |
What is Jack Ma’s net worth?
Jack Ma is a Chinese entrepreneur and the founder of Alibaba Group, which owns various online businesses.
Before founding Alibaba, Ma faced one rejection after another and got used to being told he wasn’t good enough.
And for a guy who was told he was never good enough, becoming one of the richest people in the world has proven them wrong.
Today, Jack Ma’s net worth is estimated at $24.5 Billion.
Table of Contents
Early Life
Jack Ma was born on the 10th of September 1964 in Hangzhou, China.
At a young age, Jack was very interested in learning English and went to great lengths to improve his skills.
He would ride his bicycle 70 minutes a day to and from Hangzhou’s international hotel to converse with tourists.
Ma also started offering free tours around the city in exchange for English lessons.
When it came to college, Ma struggled to pass the entrance exams. They are only held once a year in China, and it took him a total of 4 years to pass.
Eventually, he graduated from Hangzhou Teacher’s Institute and became an English teacher, where he was only paid a very small wage.
Career
After graduating from Hangzhou Normal University in 1988, Jack Ma applied for several jobs and was rejected by every single one.
However, he was able to start his own company, Hangzhou Haibo Translation Agency in 1994 and, the following year, created a website about Chinese beer.
Soon after, he launched China Pages, his second company, which earned the equivalent of $1.18 million in today’s currency in three years.
Quickly becoming one of the richest people in Asia, Jack Ma became the go-to guy for building websites for Chinese companies.
Building His Fortune
In 1998, Jack Ma worked with the China International Commerce Center but quit in 1999 to establish Alibaba in Hangzhou.
By 2000, Alibaba earned $25 million in venture seed capital from Goldman Sachs and SoftBank, which allowed it to grow exponentially.
Three years later, Ma started the Taobao Marketplace, which eBay offered to purchase, but Ma turned them down.
Instead, Ma gained support from Jerry Yang, the co-founder of Yahoo, who offered him a $1 billion investment in Alibaba.
Since then, Jack Ma has grown Alibaba to include several subsidiaries, including AliExpress, Alipay, Alibaba Cloud Computing, and Tmall eTao.
Ma also launched the non-profit organization, the Alibaba Hong Kong Young Entrepreneurs Foundation, in 2015.
This organization helps support entrepreneurs in Hong Kong so they can expand their businesses and become successful.
In the same year, Ma’s company funded the construction of 1,000 houses in Nepal after the country was devastated by an earthquake.
In 2017, Ma met with then-President-elect Donald Trump to discuss expanding Alibaba’s business interests inside the United States.
At the same time, he partnered with Li Ka-Shing, the Hong Kong business tycoon, to offer a digital wallet service in HK.
Jack Ma then stepped down as the executive chairman of Alibaba Group Holding in 2018, allowing Daniel Zhang to take over.
He also stepped down from the board of Alibaba in 2020, though he remains involved in the company.
Ma’s Recent Involvement
Following a 2020 regulatory crackdown on Alibaba, Jack Ma disappeared from the public eye after criticizing China’s banks and regulators.
However, the Alibaba Foundation and the Jack Ma Foundation did donate medical supplies to the US, Africa, and Europe during the COVID-19 pandemic.
For his philanthropy, Ma was named one of Asia’s “Heroes of Philanthropy,” and he was given the Malcolm S. Forbes Lifetime Achievement Award.
In 2022, Ma was reportedly living under the radar in Tokyo, Japan, though he returned to Hangzhou to tour the Yungu school in 2023.
The school, funded by Alibaba, is located near the company’s headquarters, and after his visit, Ma returned to traveling abroad.
Later that year, Ma became a visiting professorat the University of Tokyo, focusing on food production and agriculture while lecturing on entrepreneurship.
In 2024, Ma became Alibaba’s largest shareholder, replacing SoftBank, who previously held the company’s largest share.
Now one of the richest people in the world, Jack Ma continues to have a huge influence on e-commerce and technology in China and around the world.
Jack Ma Net Worth
As of June 2024, Jack Ma’s net worth is estimated at $24.5 Billion.
Jack Ma’s Net Worth Over Time
| Year | Net Worth |
|---|---|
| 2009 | $1.3 Billion |
| 2010 | $1.2 Billion |
| 2011 | $1.6 Billion |
| 2012 | $2.6 Billion |
| 2013 | $3.4 Billion |
| 2014 | $10 Billion |
| 2015 | $22.7 Billion |
| 2016 | $20.5 Billion |
| 2017 | $28.3 Billion |
| 2018 | $39 Billion |
| 2019 | $37.3 Billion |
| 2020 | $38.8 Billion |
| 2021 | $48.4 Billion |
| 2022 | $22.8 Billion |
| 2023 | $23.5 Billion |
| 2024 | $24.5 Billion |
Highlights
Here are some of the best highlights of Jack Ma’s career:
- Offered city tours to foreign visitors in exchange for learning English
- Graduated from Hangzhou’s Teacher’s Institute (1988)
- Got rejected for many jobs including Manager’s position at KFC
- Hired as an English teacher at a local university, and made $12/month
- Gather 17 friends in his apartment, asking them to invest in Alibaba
- Yahoo invested $1 billion in Alibaba (2005)
- Resigned as CEO (2013)
Favorite Jack Ma Quotes
“Today is hard, tomorrow will be worse, but the day after tomorrow will be sunshine.” – Jack Ma
“If you’ve never tried, how will you ever know if there’s any chance?” – Jack Ma
“Opportunities lie in the place where the complaints are.” – Jack Ma
“If we want to change the world, we change ourselves.” – Jack Ma
“Once in your life, try something, work hard at something. Try to change. Nothing bad can happen.” – Jack Ma
View our larger collection of the best Jack Ma quotes!
3 Success Lessons from Jack Ma
Now you know all about Jack Ma’s net worth, and how he achieved success; here are 3 success lessons we can all learn from Jack Ma:
1. Grow from Rejection
Anybody being the only person to be rejected from KFC out of 24 applicants, would likely be discouraged. Discouraged from even bothering to try again, demotivated to find success in life.
Jack Ma didn’t take it that way. Instead, he continued to try, again and again. He knew that you have to fall many times to finally find your feet.
2. Don’t Let People Get You Down
When you’re told you’re not good enough, it’s a horrible feeling. Ma was never phased by this.
He kept on living his life, and looking for new opportunities. Which eventually led him to find the internet, and found Alibaba.
If he hadn’t suffered this rejection and the opinions of others, then he may never have stumbled onto the opportunity that brought him success.
3. Go to Extreme Lengths to Improve Your Knowledge
Ma’s dedication to learning English when he was younger has become an irreplaceable skill later in life.
The lengths he went to to improve his knowledge had a big impact on his ability to carry out his Alibaba vision later on.
Not only that, but this work ethic ensured Alibaba would be a success.
He brought the same effort to learning about the internet, as he did learning English.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much is Jack Ma worth?
Jack Ma’s net worth is estimated to be $24.5 Billion.
How old is Jack Ma?
Jack Ma was born on October 15, 1964, and is currently 59 years old.
How tall is Jack Ma?
Jack Ma’s height is 1.61 m, equal to 5 ft 3 in.
Summary
Rejection has been present in Jack Ma’s life ever since he was a teenager, and he faced much of it.
But his inspiring story, from being rejected from a position at KFC to founding one of the most valuable companies in the world, is inspiring for us all.
As of 2024, Jack Ma’s net worth is estimated to be $24.5 Billion.
