Alibaba's Tsai says will 'never' change partnership structure for Hong Kong IPO

"The one thing I can't understand is people think we're going to change our partnership structure just to accommodate a listing in Hong Kong, that's never going to happen," said Tsai.

"Hong Kong is a place where people take the one share, one vote principle very seriously," he added. "That's how they feel is the one thing that maintains the integrity of the market - I respect that."

Tsai's comments were the strongest defense so far by Alibaba of its partnership structure, putting the ball in Hong Kong's court to change its listing rules soon or risk losing what's potentially the biggest-ever initial public offering by an Internet company, surpassing social media giant Facebook Inc's $16 billion listing in 2012.

The Chinese e-commerce titan has been at odds with Hong Kong regulators, which last year rejected Alibaba's plans for an IPO in the city with a shareholder structure that allowed a group of top managers and founders to nominate and control the board, while holding only around 13 percent of the company's shares.

Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd (HKEx) <0388.HK> and the Securities and Futures Commission have been discussing since late last year potential changes to listing rules to allow for "weighted voting rights". Discussions over a paper to be put for public consultation should last through the first quarter.

(Reporting by Paul Carsten and Anne Marie Roantree; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell)