Sam Reynolds

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                <li>Joe Tsai, co-founder and vice chairman at Alibaba, has often been called Jack Ma’s right hand man</li>
                <li>Given the regulatory environment surrounding digital assets in China, it’s unlikely that Alibaba will get involved in crypto in any meaningful way</li>
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<p>Authorities in China have done all they can to make <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/no-china-didnt-ban-crypto-its-just-pushing-exchanges-offshore/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">buying digital assets as difficult as possible</a> for those in-country. But Alibaba’s co-founder and executive vice chairman Joe Tsai says he likes crypto. </p>



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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">I like crypto</p>&mdash; Joe Tsai (@joetsai1999) <a href="https://twitter.com/joetsai1999/status/1475705992964763655?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 28, 2021</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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<p>What might be a mundane remark in the circles of crypto Twitter is interesting coming from a man of Tsai’s stature.</p>



<p>Alibaba is China&#8217;s e-commerce giant and Tsai is often described as Jack Ma&#8217;s right-hand man.</p>



<p>When asked by commentators on Twitter to elaborate on his comment, he didn&#8217;t reply.</p>



<p>For example, James Lloyd, a Citi executive based in Hong Kong, <a href="https://twitter.com/jamesplloyd/status/1475760877047463937" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">asked</a> if Tsai had posted the same thing on Weibo, a China-based social networking platform that is tightly controlled by Beijing.</p>



<p>It’s unlikely that Alibaba will make any inroads into the cryptocurrency industry, even offshore. In November <a href="https://cms.blockworks.co/chinas-tech-giants-yes-on-nfts-no-on-cryptocurrencies/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Blockworks reported</a> that three of China’s major tech giants, including Alibaba, signed a self-regulatory pledge to keep their growing NFT marketplaces away from cryptocurrencies.<br><br>Part of that pledge included promises that they would work together with authorities in “preventing money laundering, promising dissociation with virtual currency, upholding consumers rights, and promoting national culture.”</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Anti-crypto but pro-blockchain</h3>



<p>Despite its anti-crypto institutional stance, Alibaba is a big proponent of blockchain technology.<br><br>As Beijing has identified blockchain as a strategic technology, Alibaba has spent considerable sums on R&amp;D for blockchain infrastructure. Alibaba’s <a href="https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/ky2dAVu4LOj7M4pkdkK0qA" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">fintech subsidiary Ant Group has filed</a> for 7,000 blockchain-related patents and has been awarded 631 as of August 2021.</p>



<p>Although Alibaba needs to steer clear of crypto, Tsai, as a private investor, has some indirect exposure. Kevin Durant, a superstar player on the Brooklyn Nets, which Tsai owns, has a stake in Coinbase. Durant bought equity in 2017 through his venture fund Thirty-Five Ventures. As part of the investment deal, he acts as an ambassador for the team and is one of the faces of the Coinbase brand.</p>



<p>Tsai is said to be worth nearly $10 billion, according to a profile in the &#8220;<a href="https://financialpost.com/personal-finance/high-net-worth/whos-joseph-tsai-the-canadian-man-of-action-behind-alibabas-embattled-jack-ma" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Financial Post</a>.&#8221; While he holds a Canadian passport, it&#8217;s unclear if he’s ever lived in Canada or if the passport is merely an insurance policy should he run afoul of Chinese authorities, as Jack Ma <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/22/technology/jack-ma-alibaba-tycoons.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">did</a> in early 2021.</p>



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