Ma hails women's role in business, calling them 'backbone of his empire'

Women not only fuel the exponential growth of Alibaba Group Holding's online emporium, they also form the backbone of the business empire that is eyeing to serve 2 billion customers and create 100 million job opportunities in two decades.

According to billionaire founder Jack Ma, around half of the sellers on its gigantic Tmall and Taobao marketplaces are women, and a greater proportion of storefronts with higher positive user ratings have female owners.

These are clear manifestations that the internet has helped level the playing field and enabled women to create and pursue opportunities to flourish in their own right, Ma told the 2017 Global Conference on Women and Entrepreneurship in Hangzhou on Monday.