Wong MNC Center Hosts and Co-Sponsors China Goes Global 2025

In mid-July 2025, the Mr. & Mrs. S.H. Wong Center for the Study of Multinational Corporations (Wong MNC Center) hosted and co-sponsored the 19th Annual China Goes Global (CGG) conference organized by the Chinese Globalization Association, a United States (US) non-profit organization.  The theme of CGG 2025 was “China and Fractured Globalization” which gave attendees a chance to discuss research on as well as reflect upon themes such as China’s changing relationships with the United States, Europe and other regions, China’s industrial policy and the China-oriented industrial policies of other countries, China’s technology policy, evolving Chinese domestic politics and its effect on Chinese external economic policies, and techno-nationalism and supply chain shifts.  The conference gathered audience members, keynote speakers, and research presenters from China, Italy, Ukraine, the US, Vietnam, among other countries, and provided an extremely productive venue for knowledge dissemination, intellectual exchange, and professional networking.

One highlight of the event was a panel on “Asia Pacific Rebalancing” featuring Mr. Ker Gibbs, Executive in Residence at the University of San Francisco and former President of the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, as well as the Ambassador Dr. Hoang Anh Tuan, current Consul General of the Consulate General of Viet Nam in San Francisco.  Another was a Day 1 keynote by Mr. Ken Jarrett, Senior Advisor at Albright Stonebridge Group who, among other things, also served as President of the American Chamber of Commerce and the US Consul General in Shanghai.  Jarret spoke about US China policy and its uncertainties and tensions between the US and China as well as their implications for American businesses in and dealing with China as well as their ramifications for Chinese businesses, and offered some advice to businesses about how to navigate current tensions.  Day 1 concluded with a Fireside chat with Mr. Ganesh Iyer, the CEO of NIO US.  Iyer discussed his firm’s market and product development strategies, ongoing shifts in its supply chain, some of its innovations (which include the embrace of the Battery as a Service model), and various techniques the company has been using to address data security concerns in the US, where it, as of yet, does not sell cars.  Iyer also brought one of NIO’s latest models to CGG 2025, which gave attendees a unique chance to view and explore its features.

A highlight of Day 2 was a keynote speech by Ken Wilcox, the author of “The Chinese Business Conundrum.”  Wilcox served as the CEO of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) from 2001 to 2011 and then the CEO of SVB’s joint venture with Shanghai Pudong Development Bank (SPDB-SVB) in Shanghai until 2015.  Following this, he served for four years as its Vice Chairman.  Wilcox charted the rise of SVB during his tenure there and also offers his views on why SVB failed.  He discussed in depth his entry to China and his high hopes, reported on the efforts that he made to court Chinese government and Communist Party officials and vice versa, and chronicled many of the obstacles SBV encountered during his time in China.  He further identified a number of major disappointments surrounding SVB’s attempt to profit in China and raised various warnings for other foreign businesses in China.