To James Hahn, a New Jersey-born Chinese investment banker, who recently gave a speech before UN delegates on the topic of "Global Private Equity", the answer is clear, "bringing private equity to China".

Unlike his fellow overseas Chinese, who prefer China because of their ethnic connection, Hahn, who describes himself as being 100 per cent American, said he favours China, particularly Shanghai, for the tremendous business opportunities he sees.

Hahn started his Wall Street investment banking career 17 years ago at PaineWebber. In the years that followed, he served at big names such as Prudential Securities, Merrill Lynch and UBS, including a three-year stint as a manager of a global hedge fund in New York.

Two years ago, he started his own business - Alpine Venture Associates and Global Venture Asset Management, a private equity fund of funds.

One of the roles played by Alpine is to organize the Annual Global Private Equity Conference, which is held in New York City during October of every year, attracting over US$200 billion in private equity or over 60 per cent of the total committed private equity in the US.

On May 15, Hahn moved the investment forum to Shanghai for the first time.

The forum assembles a powerful delegation of limited partners, private equity investors and industrial leaders from around the world.

During the forum, investors give valuable insights and provide clear directions in global venture capital and private equity investments, with a focus on the importance of key investments in China and the APEC nations.

China Daily news

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