Jack Ma is to resign as CEO of China’s biggest e-commerce company, the Alibaba Group. Ma is set to announce the news at Friday’s ceremony to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the online retail platform, Taobao.

Former executive vice President, Lu Zhaoxi has been chosen as his replacement. In January, Ma issued an open letter to employees stating his intention to retire. He is the first mainland Chinese entrepreneur to appear on the cover of Forbes Magazine and ranks as one of the world’s richest men.

Alibaba.com was founded by Ma in 1999, as a China-based business-to-business marketplace. In November 2012, Alibaba’s online transaction volumes exceeded one trillion yuan.