Founder of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., Jack Ma has reportedly stepped down as Chief Executive Officer as he passes the baton to successor Jonathan Lu and said he plans to focus on environmental protection and education. He is however expected to remain as executive chairman and handle strategic planning. The development surfaces in the midst of an eagerly awaited IPO of the company.
Bloomberg news, citing a company statement, said the incoming CEO Lu joined the firm in 2000 to take care of the South China sales region for Alibaba.com before rising to the helm of Alipay in 2004 and becoming executive officer of Taobao in 2008. Later in 2011, he is said to have become CEO of the then-publicly traded Alibaba.com Ltd and in 2012 handed the responsibility of chief data officer and overseen development of the firm's mobile operating system called AMOS.
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