Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. is expecting newly appointed Michael Evans, a Canadian Olympic gold medalist and once touted to be the next chief executive of Goldman Sachs Group Inc., to help them make a big break in the United States, Reuters reported.
Michael Evans, who retired from the U.S. investment bank in 2013, has been regarded as one of the most prolific deal makers in China during his seven-year stint in Hong Kong from 2004 to 2011.
Evans, turning 58 this month, was given the responsibility to lead Alibaba's expansion outside its homeland, a challenge that will be particularly tough, considering the U.S. regulators' usual hostile attitude to Chinese firms acquiring U.S. technology assets.
"Evans was Mr. China back when he was at Goldman," Eugene Tan, head of Asian Investment Banking at Oppenheimer Investments Asia limited, said.
"For a Westerner he was regarded as knowing how the country works and he'll be a useful face for Alibaba to fight off negative sentiments as they try and break into the U.S. market," Tan added.
Reuters said that Evans cannot be contacted outside of normal working hours in the U.S., where he is said to be presently based.
According to the report, Evans will also be expected to sign, in behalf of Alibaba, partnership agreements with U.S. brands and retailers, as well as in Europe and the rest of Asia.
Tan, who worked with Evans at Goldman, said that the Evan's appointment is part of Alibaba's wider strategy to recruit and hire tech bankers to help the company secure valuable technology from overseas.
"They are hiring up almost every tech banker I know. Jack Ma is a smart guy, he realizes you don't need to develop tech yourself all the time, you can just buy it," Tan said.
Evans is the second former Goldman Sachs banker to take a senior role at Alibaba. Before him, Alibaba took Michael Yao, who joined the company as head of corporate finance in 2012. Yao guided Alibaba to its record $25 billion U.S. initial public offering in 2014.