HANGZHOU - Jack Ma, founder and executive chairman of Alibaba Group, rode a Harley, donned white gloves, and even performed a Michael Jackson-inspired dance at the company's 18th birthday celebration recently.

Ma, entering the stage on the Harley, wore a gold-and-silver mask and military-style outfit at the Sept 8 party, CNBC reported.

After thrilling the crowd with a few splashy King of Pop's moves and poses, Ma soon pulled off his prince's mask to reveal he was behind the nifty footwork.

A group of Alibaba's employees then joined him onstage, dancing and clapping to a medley of Jackson's hits, CNBC said.

This is not the first time Ma has performed at an Alibaba event.

At a 2009 event, Ma had dressed up as heavy metal lead singer and performed Elton John's Can You Feel The Love Tonight.

In a Chinese business environment dominated by buttoned-down bureaucrats, Ma, 53, certainly stands out with his flamboyance.

Like Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group, Ma relishes outrageous publicity stunts, particularly when they involve dressing up, the Telegraph reported.

Ma is Asia's richest person, according to Bloomberg in August.

Forbes gives the former English teacher's net worth as US$38.5 billion (S$52.9 billion).

Ma's Alibaba Group is one of the world's largest e-commerce businesses. Its revenue in the 12 months ending in March 2017 rose by 56 per cent to US$23 billion, according to Forbes.

Chinese netizens, entralled by Ma's latest performance, praised him widely on the Internet.

"Papa Ma's dance moves are fascinating," says one netizen.