Jack Ma’s local bar lacks one thing: its most famous regular

A table used for praying for good fortune, with a picture of Ma, at a Tmall office in Hangzhou, China. Ma hasn’t been seen in public since the US$35bil (RM141.31bil) initial public offering of Alibaba-affiliate Ant Group Co, potentially the biggest ever, was called off by authorities in November. — Reuters

Business was brisk at the HHB Music House on a recent Thursday night. The live music venue, located just a short taxi ride from Alibaba Group Holding Ltd’s headquarters, was crowded, with virtually all of the dozen or so tables and booths occupied by Jack Ma fans ordering Alibaba-themed cocktails with their Alibaba mobile app in the dark and listening to cover songs by the house band. Many were probably hoping to catch a glimpse of its most famous customer, who hasn’t been seen or heard since November.

Ma, who used to come at least once a month to the bar that was opened by Alibaba executives in early 2019, hasn’t been around since late last year, said one worker, who would only speak on the condition of anonymity. HHB, which stands for “Happy Honey Badger”, an animal known for its ferocious fighting abilities that Ma modelled himself after, is a shrine of sorts to the man who put China Inc on the map. In the lobby were a few copies of This Is Ma Yun, a biography written by his personal assistant, and baseball caps emblazoned with a bow-tied feral-looking badger for sale.