Chinese billionaire Jack Ma (No. 33 in the global ranking of billionaires according to Forbes, net worth: $22.7 billion), who founded the Alibaba Group, admitted on Friday that the current moment is favorable for expansion into Russia, the TASS agency reported on Friday .

“I think now is the right, good time,” Ma responded to a question about whether the devaluation of the ruble and the decline in the purchasing power of the population had an impact on his expansion plans in Russia.

Ma explained that good times come and go. And if everything is too expensive in the “golden” time, then now is the right time to work on logistics, payment systems, and support for consumer small businesses. He admitted that at the end of last year there was some decline in the company's business in Russia due to the fall of the ruble. “When everything is down, you have to work. You can win on the upswing. I am optimistic,” Ma emphasized.

The founder of Alibaba arrived in Russia for the first time. He was invited to participate in the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF-2015). On May 19, he will speak at the forum on the future of online trading.

Former teacher Jack Ma has become the second richest person in China after construction magnate Wang Jianlin (No. 29 in the Forbes global ranking, worth $24.2 billion).

Alibaba was founded by him in 1999 and today is the largest Chinese e-commerce company. Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov said that the return on his investments in Alibaba exceeded 500%.

In 2014, Alibaba Group raised $25 billion in an IPO on the New York Stock Exchange.

In 2013, Jack Ma left the post of CEO of the company. And currently heads its board of directors. Ma, along with Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg (No. 16 in the global ranking of billionaires according to Forbes, net worth: $33.4 billion) and Russian billionaire Yuri Milner , is on the board of the Breakthrough Prize Foundation, which awards awards to scientists.

The founder of Alibaba recognized the moment was right to come to Russia