J. Michael Evans

John Michael Evans (born August 16, 1957) is a Canadian technology executive and the President of Alibaba Group. He previously spent 20 years working for U.S. investment bank Goldman Sachs and is a former Olympic rower.

J. Michael Evans

Speaking at the 2022 World Economic Forum
Personal information
Birth name	John Michael Evans
Born	(1957-08-16) August 16, 1957 (age 67) Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Education	Princeton University, University College, Oxford
Occupation	Technology executive
Medal record Men's rowing Representing  Canada Olympic Games 1984 Los Angeles Eight

Early life, family and education

Evans was born to Dr. John Robert Evans and his wife Jean on August 16, 1957. Besides his twin brother Mark, he has four other siblings: Derek, Gillian (Gill), Timothy (Tim), and Willa.^[1][2][3]

He attended Upper Canada College in Toronto and received his bachelor's degree from Princeton University.^[4] He later studied at University College, Oxford^[5] where he rowed stroked the Oxford boat in the Oxford-Cambridge Boat Race.^[6][7] Alongside his twin brother Mark, Evans went on to join the Canadian Olympic team, where he won a gold medal in rowing at the 1984 Summer Games in Los Angeles.^[8]

Career

In 2015, Evans was appointed President of Alibaba Group, where he leads Alibaba Group’s international growth strategy outside of China and reports to CEO Daniel Zhang.^[9] Evans has served on the board of Alibaba Group since its September 2014 IPO, and has known Alibaba Group founder Jack Ma since 1999 when Ma first approached Goldman Sachs regarding an early investment in the company.^[9] Evans was named as one of the National Retail Federation’s Power Players in 2019 for his work at Alibaba Group.^[10]

In addition, Evans is currently a member of the Board of Directors of Barrick Gold Corporation and several not-for-profit organizations.^[11]

He is also a trustee of the Asia Society and a member of the Advisory Council for the Bendheim Center for Finance at Princeton University.^[12]

Before Alibaba Group, Evans was vice chairman of Goldman Sachs, chairman of Goldman Sachs Asia and spent 19 years as a Partner after joining the firm in 1993.^[13]

In the high-profile IPO, Goldman was one of six lead underwriters with Mark Schwartz, chairman of Goldman Asia Pacific, named as lead banker for Goldman in a lead-up New York Times report.^[14]

In 2019 Evans was charged for his involvement in the 1MDB scandal, which took place during his time at Goldman Sachs, which was settled.^[15][16]

Philanthropy

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Evans was personally involved in several philanthropic efforts to donate personal protective equipment (PPE) for healthcare workers in New York.^[17] New York Governor Andrew Cuomo acknowledged in a press briefing that Alibaba Group’s and Evans’ assistance had been “very helpful to us.”^[18]

See also

• List of Princeton University Olympians
• Mark Evans

References

1. "John Evans Obituary". Toronto Star. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
2. Perkins, Tara (February 23, 2012). "John Evans family donates $10-million to MaRS". The Globe and Mail.
3. Stoffman, Judy (March 6, 2015). "A humble man of many talents, John Evans reinvented medical education". The Globe and Mail.
4. Gelles, David (November 19, 2018). "Michael Evans of Alibaba on Singles Day and Olympic Rowing". The New York Times. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
5. "Oxonian Olympians". University of Oxford. Archived from the original on September 20, 2012. Retrieved August 15, 2012.
6. Dheensaw, Cleve (March 4, 2013). "Victoria's Howard looks to stroke Oxford to victory in Boat Race". Victoria Times-Colonist. Retrieved March 30, 2013.
7. "Canadian helps Oxford win annual University Boat Race over Cambridge". CBC Sports. The Canadian Press. March 31, 2013. Archived from the original on April 2, 2013. Retrieved April 6, 2013.
8. "J. Michael Evans". The Canadian Olympic Committee. August 25, 2020.
9. "Alibaba Group Names Michael Evans as President". The Wall Street Journal. August 4, 2015.
10. "The Power Players 2019". NRF Foundation. September 7, 2020.
11. "J Michael Evans President, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd". Bloomberg. September 8, 2020.
12. "Michael Evans". Luxury Law Summit. September 7, 2020.
13. "Michael Evans: A Closer Look at Goldman Sachs' New Wonder Boy". Wall Street Journal. January 27, 2011.
14. de la Merced, Michael J., "The Six Banks Leading Alibaba’s Giant I.P.O.", New York Times Dealbook, May 6, 2014. Retrieved August 6, 2015.
15. Chen, Lulu Yilun (August 9, 2019). "Alibaba President Among Those Malaysia Charged in 1MDB Deal". Bloomberg.
16. "Goldman Sachs settles 1MDB case with Malaysia for $3.9bn". Financial Times. July 24, 2020.
17. Stevenson, Alexandra; Kulish, Nicholas; Gelles, David (April 24, 2020). "Frantic for Coronavirus Gear, Americans in Need Turn to China's Elite". The New York Times.
18. Higgins-Dunn, Noah; Lovelace Jr., Berkeley; Feuer, Will; Mangan, Dan (April 3, 2020). "New York Gov. Cuomo says state saw its biggest single-day increase in coronavirus deaths on Thursday". CNBC.