Zhang Yong Steps Down from Alibaba Cloud... "His Era Has Ended"

Jack Ma's successor, Daniel Zhang, who led Alibaba's cloud division, suddenly resigned. Local media outlets reported one after another, saying "The era of Daniel Zhang has ended."

On the 10th, local media such as China Business Journal and Caixin reported that Daniel Zhang, chairman and CEO of Alibaba Cloud, had resigned. On the same day, Alibaba Group Chairman Joseph Tsai sent a letter to all employees stating, "The transfer of the group's management rights has been completed as scheduled," and announced that he would take over as chairman of the group's board. He also said that following Daniel Zhang's resignation request, Wu Yongming would concurrently serve as chairman and CEO of Alibaba Cloud.

Earlier in March, Alibaba introduced the '1+6+N' innovation plan, which consists of one holding company, six business units, and several other operational organizations. In June, it was mentioned that Daniel Zhang would resign as group chairman and take charge of the cloud business, and that Joseph Tsai would succeed as group chairman on September 10. Wu Yongming was expected to take the position of head of the e-commerce division. However, on the scheduled day (September 10), Daniel Zhang stepped down from the cloud division as well, and Wu Yongming succeeded him.

The company did not provide any specific background or reasons for Daniel Zhang's departure, only stating that "he achieved outstanding results during his 16 years with Alibaba" and that he would be awarded the honorary title of 'Alibaba Contributor.' Going forward, Daniel Zhang will be in charge of a newly established technology fund. The fund will receive an investment of $1 billion (approximately 1.3339 trillion KRW).

Daniel Zhang was appointed CFO of Taobao and was the architect of Taobao's initial business model. In 2009, he organized the November 11 discount event known as 'Shuangshiyi (Singles' Day).' After years of losses, Taobao began to generate profits for the first time. He became CEO in 2015, and after Jack Ma stepped down as chairman of the group's board in 2018, Daniel Zhang led the group. China Business Journal reported on his resignation, stating, "The era of Daniel Zhang has completely ended."

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