Ma’s Wealth Tumbles $752 Million as Alibaba Slides to Record Low

HANGZHOU, China — Billionaire Jack Ma's fortune declined $752 million Wednesday after Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. dropped to the lowest level since China's biggest e-commerce operator went public in September.

Ma’s net worth slid 2.4 percent to $31.2 billion as the company he founded declined 5.1 percent to close at $73.38 in New York. Alibaba’s quarterly sales rose at the slowest pace in at least three years and transaction volumes missed analysts’ estimates amid a weakening Chinese economy. Ma, 50, who has a 6.2 percent stake in the company, is the world’s 21st-richest person, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

Alibaba has lost more than $71 billion of its market value this year amid a saturation in the e-commerce market in China’s larger, wealthier cities. China’s economy is growing at the weakest pace since 1990, and Alibaba is facing lawsuits over counterfeits. The stock has never traded below $68 a share, the price set in September’s initial public offering, which raised a record $25 billion.

Robert Christie, a spokesman for Alibaba, didn’t respond to a call and an e-mail seeking comment.

Ma’s net worth has declined by $6.3 billion after reaching a high of $37.4 billion on June 3. He is the third-richest person in Asia, trailing Wang Jianlin and Li Ka-shing, according to the index.

By: Anders Melin, Jack Witzig and Lulu Yilun Chen. Editors: Laura Marcinek, Dan Reichl.