China Finance Forum 2024

Himalee Bahl is an Investment Director at Fidelity International and is based in Hong Kong. She works closely with Fidelity’s Asia Pacific Equity Portfolio Managers as part of the wider investment team, where she is responsible for managing select Asia Pacific equity franchises, developing product and client strategy, and presenting the firm’s equity investment capabilities across all client channels and geographies.

Himalee has 24 years of experience in the financial services industry, of which 18 are with Fidelity International. She joined Fidelity in 2006 as Investment Communications Specialist based in India covering Global, Emerging Markets and US equities and subsequently relocated to Hong Kong in 2015. Prior to joining Fidelity, Himalee was a Principal Correspondent with Outlook Money, India’s first personal finance magazine where she covered sectors such as automobiles, hospitality, and commodities as areas of investment opportunities.

Himalee holds a Bachelor of Economics Degree from the University of Delhi, and a Post Graduate Diploma in Investment Management.

Judith Bogner is a television presenter, event facilitator and commentator for international finance, business and geopolitics based between the UK and Germany. For more than ten years she was one of the main European anchors of the financial news channel Bloomberg Global Television in London. Since 2012 Judith runs her own business, offering event and business facilitation, client advisory boards and strategic consulting. She is also a UK accredited mediator.

Judith regularly leads public and private events for corporate and institutional clients in the financial sector and beyond. Her list of clients include the Federation of German Industries, the Euro Finance Week (Frankfurt), Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Bank of New York Mellon, The Brewers of Europe, Luxembourg for Finance, the Dutch Development Bank FMO, Ergo Insurance, State Street, Scope Ratings, the Institute of Culinary Art, Allianz Global Assistance, Wacom and the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Born in Germany, Judith has lived in Switzerland, China, Ukraine, France and Italy. She is bilingual in English-German and also speaks Italian, French and Mandarin Chinese. Judith holds a degree in International Business Management and Chinese from the University of Applied Sciences in Bremen.

Paul Chahine has been the Sustainable Finance Manager at the Luxembourg Stock Exchange (LuxSE) since November 2019. In addition to contributing to the Luxembourg Green Exchange (LGX) projects, Paul is leading the daily management of the LGX Academy, the sustainable finance education arm of LuxSE where he serves as the lead lecturer. Paul also oversees sustainable finance partnerships and capacity building programs with emerging economies, international organisations and governments. Under this capacity Paul travelled to several countries in Asia and Africa where he worked closely with public and private institutions on building their capacities when issuing sustainable bonds. Finally, he  also represents LuxSE in several international and national forums such as the UN COPs , and contributes to several working groups including those formed by ICMA , UN SSE initiative and WFE.

Before joining the LGX team, Paul refined his specialisation in climate finance as a consultant for the European Investment Bank’s climate team, where he played a pivotal role in climate finance tracking and methodologies.

Paul has a master’s degree in Banking and Finance from the University of Bordeaux- France, and a master’s degree in Higher European Studies from the European College of Parma Foundation- Italy. 

Charlotte Chen is a Partner of Elvinger Hoss Prussen and in charge of the Hong Kong office. She practises investment fund and corporate law. She specialises in the field of formation and structuring of investment funds under the form of regulated or non-regulated vehicle for Asian and global asset managers pursuing liquid or private equity, real estate and debt strategies. Additionally, Charlotte advises institutional and private investors investing in funds or acquiring fund management platform.

She speaks English, Mandarin, French and Cantonese.

Rorry Daniels is the Managing Director of Asia Society Policy Institute (ASPI), where she leads and oversees strategy and operations for ASPI’s projects on security, climate change and trade throughout Asia. She is also a Senior Fellow with ASPI’s Center for China Analysis. She was previously with the National Committee on American Foreign Policy where she managed the organization’s Track II and research portfolio on Asia security issues, with a particular focus on cross-Taiwan Strait relations, U.S.-China relations, and the North Korean nuclear program. Her most recent research project audited the U.S.-China Strategic & Economic Dialogue to evaluate its process and outcomes.

She regularly writes and provides analysis for major media outlets and newsletters on security issues in the U.S. and the Asia Pacific. She is a 2022 Mansfield-Luce scholar, a member of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations and the National Committee on North Korea, a Pacific Forum Young Leader, as well as a Korea Society Kim Koo Foundation Fellow (2015 cohort). She earned her M.S. in International Relations at NYU’s Center for Global Affairs, where she focused her studies on East and South Asia. She is proficient in Mandarin and holds a B.A. in Media Studies from Emerson College.

Crystal joined BNP Paribas Asset Management’s (BNPPAM) Sustainability Centre in the beginning of 2023 focusing on ESG integration across all asset classes in Asia. As the dedicated research lead for the Asian region, she drives the research, development and implementation of ESG research which supports ESG integration in the region – including with our Asian joint venture business partners – aligned with BNPP AM’s Global Sustainability Strategy. Crystal is also responsible for supporting sustainability engagement activities with companies in the region.

She has 10 years of diverse sustainability experience. She was the Principle ESG expert and Head of ESG Strategy at Ping An Insurance Group (2018-2022). Crystal was also previously ESG consultant at Ernst & Young and the Head of China ESG solutions at S&P Global. She has participated in the establishment of several ESG regulations in China and overseas.

Crystal holds MBA in Finance from Cornell University and Tsinghua University, Msc in Building Performance and Sustainability from the National University of Singapore, and is an accredited professional with LEED and WELL.

Mr Guo is in charge of Guotai Junan’s international clients.

Before joining Guotai Junan, Mr Guo was with HSBC in London. He led the World Bank’s debut bond issuance in China. He is a member of the Standing Committee of the Youth Federation of the People’s Bank of China (“PBOC”). Mr GUO’s has publications in China Bond and China Finance. He translated the book Bonds without Borders (Wiley, 2014) into Chinese (China Financial Publishing House, 2015).

Mr Guo graduated from the London Business School.

Chris Hollifield is head of business development at Luxembourg for Finance, where his work involves advising FinTech and financial companies looking to develop cross-border activity through Luxembourg-based platforms. He also advises on the development of the ecosystem in Luxembourg and on synergy creation with other key financial centres, with a focus on East Asia.

Prior to working at Luxembourg for Finance, Chris worked in the strategy department of Clearstream Banking SA, an International Central Securities Depository that facilitates the settlement of interbank transactions in over 50 markets worldwide. Here, his work focused particularly on strategic projects concerning distributed ledger technology and other FinTech topics.

Danny Howell has recently formally taken on the role as Lemanik Managing Director in Hong Kong, covering APAC. In this role he brings Lemanik’s ‘Management Company’ services offering to a substantial and growing portfolio of asset management clients across the region, supporting them in materially growing their AuM and diversifying their investor base by tapping into new investor pools where the Luxembourg fund structures are highly-regarded and trusted by investors. Lemanik Group is a long-established and trusted specialist in Luxembourg fund vehicles. Originally established as a European family office in the 1970s, the Group has since then evolved into a broader asset management, wealth management, distribution services, and fund services group, which includes a leading third-party management services company, Lemanik Asset Management.

In our Fund Services business, Lemanik differentiate ourselves through our highly client-centric approach and the Group’s sustained commitment to the region, in particular Greater China, where we maintain an on-the-ground Relationship Management and Business Development presence for our clients here. We seek to build long-term partnerships with our clients, who range in size from emerging managers to many of the largest Managers in the region, covering all asset classes. Danny’s background aligns particularly well with Lemanik’s ethos and strategy – with 18 years based in Hong Kong, having held senior roles in strategy and M&A across the region, and with the focus of much of his prior experience being on leading the establishment and successful growth of a range of significant asset/wealth businesses in Asia.

Danny holds an Engineering Degree, and an MBA, from Monash University and The University of Melbourne, respectively.

Mrs Huanji Li is a seasoned investment banker with over 15 years of experience in Europe, specializing in cross-border M&A and strategic partnerships between Asia and Europe.

She currently serves as Head of the UK Investment Banking Division at China International Capital Corporation (CICC), a leading Chinese investment bank, based in its London office. Huanji has an extensive track record in originating and executing M&A, joint ventures, and capital-raising transactions.

Prior to joining CICC in 2018, she held positions at Nomura, Deutsche Bank, RBC, and Royal Dutch Shell (in-house M&A and strategy).

Huanji earned both her master’s and bachelor’s degrees from The London School of Economics, graduating with First Class Honors, and is a CFA Charterholder.

Jeff joined E Fund Management (HK) Co. in January 2022 as the Chief Investment Officer (CIO) and also serves as the Head of the Global Equity Department. He has 19 years of experience in global financial markets.

Before joining E Fund, Jeff spent three years in equity research at Goldman Sachs International and UBS Investment Bank in London, four years as investment manager at Rioni Capital Partners LLP, a London-based global emerging market fund, and more than nine years as Head of Global Equity at EFG Asset Management, the asset management arm of a leading Swiss private bank EFG International.

Jeff holds an MSc in Accounting and Finance from The London School of Economics and Political Science, an MPhil in Management Studies from Cambridge University and a Bachelor Degree in Engineering from Tsinghua University.

Shiwei Liu is Chief Risk Manager, Credit Management Department & General Manager, Industry Planning and Research Centre of BOC, responsible for green finance development and industry portfolio management.

Shiwei Liu joined the bank in 1994 and held various positions before the current one in corporate banking, strategic planning, risk management and investment banking etc，such as Deputy General Manager & CRO of  London Branch, Deputy General Manager of Investment Banking and Asset Management Dept BOC.

Shiwei Liu graduated from Renmin University (BA) and London Business School (EMBA).

David Messenger is the Chief Executive Officer of Global Businesses for PingPong, a leading global provider of embedded finance solutions for financial institutions, fintechs, corporates, and technology platforms with cross-border payment needs. Founded in New York in 2015 with 32 offices globally, PingPong has processed over 200 billion USD in cross-border payments and has 60 financial licenses worldwide. David leads PingPong’s efforts to build comprehensive payment solutions for the most innovative and dynamic enterprises and mid-market companies expanding internationally.

David has over two decades of senior management experience in technology-focused companies across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. He has helped reshape the global payment landscape through executive roles at LianLian, American Express, and Virgin Mobile. David is also a successful entrepreneur, having founded Nuna Network (acquired by LianLian) and Mast Mobile (acquired by Hearsay Systems).

Mrs Jun Ning joined Fullgoal in 2013.

Mrs Ning has more than 13 years’ experience in equity research and investment. Currently serving as the Deputy Director of the Overseas Equity Investment Department of Fullgoal, she manages a total AUM of around 15bn USD, including a top performing and awards winning UCITS fund, Fullgoal China Small-Mid Cap Growth Fund. Through the bottom-up fundamental research and a focus on long-term excess returns, she insists on selecting the leading quality growth stocks, growing with the company and sharing the market’s growth.

Mrs Ning holds a master degree in finance from Tsinghua University and a bachelor degree also from Tsinghua University.

Mr Richard Pan is Managing Director, CIO of Global Capital Investment, Head of International Business, and Chairman of ESG Committee of ChinaAMC.

Mr Pan brings 26 years of investment experience to his role, including 11 years at ChinaAMC. Leveraging his extensive experience in domestic and international markets, Mr Pan heads up the Global Capital Investment (GCI) Division to help overseas investors invest in China’s economic growth. GCI provides dedicated services for global institutions, including central banks, sovereign wealth funds, government pension funds, family offices, and high-net-worth individuals. Mr Pan’s long-term track record is well-recognized by global institutional investors.

Mr Pan is also a committed advocate of responsible investment and ESG integration. He chairs the ESG committee at ChinaAMC and leads the ESG team embedded within the GCI Division. Under his leadership, ChinaAMC became the first full-service Chinese asset manager to sign up for UNPRI in March 2017. The ESG team is the industry’s first dedicated ESG function among all Chinese fund houses, leading the integration of ESG frameworks into the investment process. Mr Pan actively engages with companies to develop strategic ideas that enhance their value propositions, aiming to generate long-term returns for investors while contributing to the sustainable development of the corporate world.

Before joining ChinaAMC, Mr Pan served as a Director and Portfolio Manager at Manulife Asset Management from 2007 to 2011, managing its Greater China funds and QFII A-share fund. His earlier roles included Portfolio Manager at United Securities (2001-2004) and Vice President at Guotai Junan Securities starting in 1998. He holds an MBA from Georgetown University, an MA in Economics, and a BS in Engineering from Wuhan University.

Ms Xie has been practicing in Shanghai since 1999.

From the very outset of her career, she has had deep engagement in numerous high-profile joint venture deals and strategic collaborations with her global financial institution clients. She continues to work at the frontline of the legal profession and is closely involved in the opening-up of China’s financial industry. She specializes in working with highly regarded foreign financial institutions and institutional investors, and is an acknowledged leader in providing legal advice and services for the derivatives market and for investment funds.

Ms Xie’s expertise has been invaluable to her clients, helping them to design the types of legal structures and cooperative arrangements required to navigate and thrive in China’s dynamic financial regulatory environment.

With more than twenty years of experience working in financial regulatory compliance, and having been involved with a range of complex transactions involving financial institutions, Ms Xie has been able to resolve and implement effective legal solutions allowing numerous international institutional investors to enter into the Chinese markets, including those involving equities, bonds, and derivatives. She has received substantial endorsement and positive feedback from her clients.

Jinny joined ICBC Standard Bank in early 2016 as Chief China Economist, and leads the China macro research team. Her focus is to deliver market relevant insights to global investors and stakeholders. Her team launched the Belt and Road Economic research series, which offers unique insight into China’s growing connectivity across emerging economies.

The team’s in-depth coverage spans from China’s macro conditions and policy impact on global markets to Renminbi internationalisation and sustainable finance.

Prior to joining ICBCS, Jinny was a London-based Senior Economist at Standard Chartered Bank, with coverage of China-Europe macro themes. Widely recognised as a China and Renminbi expert in London, she makes frequent appearances in media and at high-level conferences.