World Innovators Meet 2021 will be held on Dec 9, 2021. To inspire the most innovative minds, 8 speakers will share their experience and insights of Chinese market.
On December 9th, 2021, China-focused investment research firm EqualOcean will host its World Innovators Meet 2021 New York Forum in New York City. The conference will cover China’s Investment Opportunities in 2022 and Beyond, featuring three panel discussions on investor sentiment towards Chinese stocks, ESG investing in China, and where to look for the next Chinese tech unicorn.
Speakers at WIM2021 New York come from diverse backgrounds boasting a range of knowledge on topics related to investing in China. The goal of the event is to foster greater cross-border understanding of the Chinese market among foreign investors, entrepreneurs, and observers.
EqualOcean is an information service provider and investment research company that aims to become a global platform for industrial innovation, with deep insights on a range of sectors in China including technology, consumption, healthcare, automobiles, etc. EqualOcean helps Chinese brands expand internationally while enabling global investors and ambitious corporations to better understand the Chinese market.
Speaker Bios:
Panel 1: Is now the right time to bullish on Chinese stocks?
Gerard A. DeBenedetto, Partner at Tan Lane Holdings, an investment management executive with 25 years of buy and sell side experience. Previously Mr. DeBenedetto launched the first foreign-owned investment advisory firm in China. His prior positions include Executive Director for Guotai AMC, a Shanghai-based fund management company where he launched the first overseas index fund in China, the NASDAQ 100 and advised on more than 1.2 billion RMB for qualified foreign institutional investors.
Kevin Chen is Chairman and CEO of Edoc Acquisition Corp. with extensive experience in investment management, with a specialization in healthcare. He was previously employed as a Chief Strategist by Hywin Capital Management LLC, a Chief Investment Officer by Three Mountain Capital Management LP, a Director-Asset Allocation by Morgan Stanley, a Member by The Bretton Woods Committee, and a Member by The Economic Club of New York.
Melanie J. Wong is currently the Head of Global Business Development at Emergis Global Capital Advisors. Previously, she served as Managing Director and Head of Asian Markets at BNY Mellon for more than a decade.
Panel 2: ESG in China - Renewables and disclosure challenges
Fanglu Wang is CITIC Capital’s Senior Managing Director and Managing Partner of CITIC Capital ESG Group. He is also the Chief Investment Officer of CITIC Kazyna Investment Fund I. He has over 30 years of experience in capital markets, corporate finance, financial engineering and risk management. He was previously Head of Product Marketing and Sales for China at HSBC, a Director in Investment Banking and Debt Capital Markets at Merrill Lynch Asia, a Vice President at Citibank Hong Kong and an Executive Director at Sakura Global Capital.
Frank Zambrelli is Executive Director of the Responsible Business Coalition at Fordham University’s Gabelli School of Business. His extensive professional experience spans fashion and retail, and the environmental, social and governance (ESG) implications therein. Zambrelli began the award-winning studio, Design Quadrant, and more recently launched the NYC-based, sustainable luxury brand, 1 Atelier.
Josephine Lau is Executive Director of the Serica Initiative. Previously, Josephine worked in U.S.-China global health philanthropy; as a policy advisor at the UN; and practiced law at Davis Polk & Wardwell and Goldman Sachs. She has also worked as a financial journalist at the Bloomberg NewsBeijing Bureau, reporting on China’s institutional investorsand outbound investments.
William Ward has three decades of global experience practicing environmental law and developing environmental policy, particularly in Asia, including twenty years as a member of the Environmental Protection Agency Senior Executive Service. A founding member of EPA’s international law office, he has advised China, Indonesia, Cambodia, Laos, Kazakhstan and other governments on environmental law and governance issues. Since leaving EPA in 2017, William has worked with Client Earth, the Worldwide Fund for Nature, the East-West Management Institute, the World Bank, FAO and other international organizations.
Panel 3: What sectors should VCs be watching for the next batch of Chinese unicorns?
(Moderator) Chris Periera is the President and CEO of the Canadian Ecosystem Institute, an organization that helps companies and people integrate smoothly into the market in North America and Asia Pacific. With over 15 years of experience in China, he has spoken at over 30 universities and professional events sharing insights about the future of technology and business, networking, and the digital economy.
Winston Ma is an investor, attorney, author, and adjunct professor in the global digital economy. He is one of a small number of native Chinese who have worked as investment professionals and practicing capital markets attorneys in both the United States and China. Most recently, he was Managing Director and Head of North America Office for China Investment Corporation (CIC), China’s sovereign wealth fund, for 10 years. Prior to that, Mr. Ma served as the deputy head of equity capital markets at Barclays Capital, a vice president at J.P. Morgan investment banking, and a corporate lawyer at Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP.
James Early is Managing Partner at Tamarack Advisory where he provides China market entry and cross-border advisory for both private and public equity investors. Prior to his time at Tamarack Advisory, he was a Special Advisor to Shenzhen Oriental Investment and CEO of UpWealth, an advisory firm serving Chinese investors in US markets.
Xi Chen is an Assistant Professor of Information, Operations and Management Sciences at New York University Stern School of Business. He studies machine learning and optimization, high-dimensional statistics and operations research. He studies statistical learning and online decision making for crowdsourcing. He also investigates operations research/management problems, such as the optimal network design in process flexibility, approximate dynamic programming and revenue management.
Keynote speech: China’s investment outlook for 2022
Yuanpu Huang is the founder of China-focused investment and industry research firm EqualOcean. Previously, he worked for several large institutions and firms like the United Nations in New York and Meituan. He received a master’s degree in international relations from China Foreign Affairs University and his MBA from NYU Stern School of Business. Yuanpu was awarded the Shanghai Youth May Fourth Medal in China in May 2019 and was selected as a member of the APEC China Business Council Digital Economy Committee in November 2020.
Event Partners
Media partners and community partners (in alphabetical order)
Click here for more information, and register for WIM2021’s New York Forum.