He’s one of China’s wealthiest and most influential men, but when Alibaba founder Jack Ma visited the White House on Tuesday, there was far less…

He’s one of China’s wealthiest and most influential men, but when Alibaba founder Jack Ma visited the White House on Tuesday, there was far less fanfare than for President Xi Jinping’s state visit last fall

Reporters spotted Ma leaving the White House grounds with several aides and at least two security guards. Ma declined to comment other than to say his meetings went well. "Very good," he said, climbing into the back seat of a black sedan on 17th Street and State Place NW, next to the Eisenhower Executive Office Building

After inquiries from reporters, a White House spokesperson confirmed that President Obama had lunch with Ma but offered no other details of their meeting. The lunch meeting was not listed on the president’s public schedule

White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest noted that Obama and Ma have shared a stage in Malaysia last November during the Asia Pacific Economic Summit, where the U.S. president interviewed China’s second-richest man in front of a crowd of business executives. they discussed climate change and the role government and businesses can play in supporting entrepreneurs. “Government is simple—just reduce the tax, or no tax, for these guys,” Ma said to applause and laughter from the audience

In brief remarks to reporters, Ma, who in April became Asia’s richest man after an Alibaba affiliate raised a new financing round, said his meeting with Obama was “very good.” An Alibaba representative confirmed Ma had a closed-door meeting at the White House that was not publicly listed in the president’s schedule. The two also had lunch together. The company declined to discuss the nature of their conversations