Alibaba succession plan: Chinese tech giant names next CEO, Chairman

Chinese tech giant Alibaba on Tuesday announced its succession plans. E-commerce executive Eddie Yongming Wu will replace the current chairman and CEO Daniel Zhang as the CEO of the company. Meanwhile, Executive Vice Chairman Joseph Tsai will succeed Zhang as the Chairman.

Zhang said in a statement it was "the right time" for him to step down as the firm looks to implement a full spin-off of its advanced cloud computing unit.

Hangzhou-based Alibaba is one of China's most prominent technology firms, with business operations spanning cloud computing, e-commerce, logistics, media and entertainment, and artificial intelligence.

Following the executive transition, Zhang will continue to serve as chairman and CEO of Alibaba Cloud Intelligence Group, the company said.

The firm has faced several unprecedented headwinds in recent years as Beijing imposed tighter restrictions on the domestic tech sector.

Alibaba said in late March that it would split into six business groups in one of the most significant overhauls of a leading Chinese tech firm to date.