Ma Yun, or Jack Ma, was born and raised in Hangzhou.

In 1994, Ma established the Hangzhou Haibo (Hope) Translation Agency; in 1995, he founded the China Pages, an internet company that specialized in crafting home pages for businesses.

In early 1999, a team of 18 smart young people was gathered at Ma’s 100-square-meter home in Hang zhou’s Hupan Garden community to begin planning another vigorous new business. From his dream emerged a vast e-commerce kingdom. He wanted to build an e-commerce website to serve China’s small and medium-sized companies. Based on this simple and persistent belief, Alibaba was born. As a city of innovative vitality, Hangzhou supported Ma’s dream.

Ma’s belief that “no business is difficult to do anywhere in the world” has inspired his business practices, as seen in Alibaba, Taobao, Tmall.com, Alipay, and Alicloud, and more. In 2014, eight of Jack Ma’s customers rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange, and Alibaba raised a fund of US$ 25 billion, becoming the largest IPO in history.

In addition to his status as a business legend, Jack Ma also carries a whiff of the chivalrous hero, which is a vivid incarnation of Asian culture in this Chinese entrepreneur. At Alibaba, Jack Ma is not called Jack Ma, but rather Feng Qingyang, a character in the martial arts and chivalry novels by Jin Yong. The conference room is not called conference room, but instead Summit of Light (Guangmingding), a location in those same stories. Ma also founded Taiji Hall, promoting a balance of physical wellness and mental fitness. He believes that the most important concepts in Taiji are “calmly facing circumstances, understanding how to flow with them, and knowing what to let go of.” This philosophy coincides with Hangzhou’s way of business life.