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Hong Kong Club to Host
2007 Global Forum
Joseph Wharton never visited Hong
Kong. But if he could see Hong Kong
today he would certainly be impressed
with its business activity and overall
buzz. Wharton alumni living and
working in Hong Kong count themselves
fortunate to be in one of the
world's leading capitalist cities, in one
of the world's most capitalist regions.
Wharton's preeminence as a business
school is well suited to Hong Kong's
preeminence in making and spending
money, and the Wharton Club of Hong
Kong is just as prosperous.
The Hong Kong club was founded
in 1999 by Paul Cheng, WG'61,
Joseph Ferrigno,W'67, and an enthusiastic
support group to serve their fellow
alumni's social and career needs as
well as promote the Wharton School in
Hong Kong. Hong Kong has a long history
of students attending Wharton, as
well as attracting Wharton grads looking
for adventure. Today there are over 300
Wharton alumni in Hong Kong, mostly
working in the financial industry covering
Greater China and Southeast Asia.
The Wharton Club of Hong Kong
has witnessed a real roller coaster of
economic activity in Hong Kong the
last several years. During 2001-2002
Hong Kong suffered from dropping
stock prices, rising unemployment, and
a general funk. It became a lot worse in
2003 with the SARS outbreak before
bottoming out and starting to improve
in 2004. The economy, job opportunities,
and the stock market have continued
improving and we currently are
enjoying a fairly bullish environment.
The Club has survived the ups and
downs of the economic cycle, and in
2005 under the slogan "more happy
hours" elected Kyle Shaw, WG'87, as
president. In the spirit of a rising market
and a strong sense of ancestor worship
the Club threw a party for Ben Franklin's
300th birthday in January 2006. 180
Wharton alumni and friends came out
for drinks, dinner, and entertainment
that included a Franklin impersonator.
Emboldened by the small but successful
Franklin party, the Club volunteered
to host the Asian Global Alumni
Forum for 2007. In keeping with the
recent Hong Kong economy, the Forum
theme will be "Up and Down the
Capitalistic Road." Hong Kong's Global
Alumni Forum aims to provide participants
with all the insights and networking
opportunities to stay on the sunny
side of whatever capitalist road they
choose in Asia. The Wharton Club of
Hong Kong hopes to see you May 2526,
2007. Visit www.whartonhongkong07.com for more.
—Kyle Shaw, WG'87
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