David Frey Partner and Head of US-China Corridor at KPMG
David Frey Partner and Head of US-China Corridor at KPMG David Frey is a Partner for Markets Strategy with KPMG in China, and has spent nearly twenty years in industry and consulting roles for clients in China, across Asia Pacific and in the Americas. He holds responsibility for several of KPMG's most important multi-national accounts in Asia Pacific, reporting regularly to the Asia Board on these accounts. David advises multinational companies on strategic growth and expansion opportunities in China and across Asia Pacific, while also serving the needs of Chinese companies investing into the USA. David leads KPMG’s US-China Strategic Corridor and advises leading bilateral institutions such as the Paulson Institute in this role. David appears regularly as a guest commentator in print media and on CNBC and CCTV regarding China’s economic development and US-China commercial issues. David’s views are called upon by both foreign governments and the China government, having served as an expert witness at a US Congressional Commission on China’s Five Year Plans, chairing a roundtable session at China’s prestigious Party School, and hosting numerous multi-lateral sessions with the Development Research Center (DRC) of the State Council regarding the financing of China’s urbanization. He is regularly invited to participate in closed-door discussions with Ambassadors, government ministers, and company Boards on the opportunities and challenges of operating in China. Before beginning his consulting career, David worked at the Development Centre of the OECD in Paris, as an aide to a United States Senator in Washington, and in strategic planning roles with two global telecommunications companies. David holds a M.A. degree from the Johns Hopkins School for Advanced International Studies (SAIS) in international relations, and graduated with Honors from the University of Kansas, where he was named to Phi Beta Kappa. He serves on the Advisory Council of the Hopkins-Nanjing Center, the first Sino-US university JV in China.
Ambassador Clifford A. Hart, Jr. Managing Director & Senior Advisor of Bower Group Asia
Ambassador Clifford A. Hart, Jr. Managing Director & Senior Advisor of Bower Group Asia Clifford A. Hart, Jr., commonly known as Ford, retired in July 2016 after a 33-year career as a U.S. diplomat focused on China but he has also worked on other leading issues in U.S. foreign policy. His final assignment was as the U.S. consul general to Hong Kong and Macau, an ambassadorial-level position. Prior to this, Ford was the special envoy for the Six-Party Talks aimed at ending North Korea’s nuclear program, for which President Barack Obama accorded him the rank of ambassador. Earlier, at the White House, Ford served as the National Security Council’s China and Taiwan director, and at the Pentagon, he was foreign policy advisor to the Chief of Naval Operation. Ford served three times in China and once each in the Soviet Union and Iraq. He also spent two one-year language training stints in Taiwan. Ford’s State Department assignments included serving as the director of the Office of Taiwan Coordination, deputy coordinator for Reconstruction and Stabilization, and deputy director for crisis management in the Operations Center. Ford was a recipient of the State Department’s highest commendation for diplomatic reporting and the U.S. Navy’s Distinguished Public Servant Award. He received State Department Superior and Meritorious Honor Awards and the U.S. Army’s Meritorious Civilian Service Award. Ford holds a master’s degree from the University of Virginia, where he was a President’s Fellow, and he is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Mary Washington College.
Simon Ogus CEO of DSG Asia Limited
Simon Ogus CEO of DSG Asia Limited Dr. Simon Ogus is the founder and CEO of DSGAsia Limited, an independent consultancy, based in Hong Kong. DSGAsia offers analysis of the economies and politics of Asia, and works with a variety of multinational and regional entities in the financial, non-financial and governmental spheres. Simon serves on the board of a number of companies and official bodies, and has also held academic positions and lectured at various universities across the region. Prior to founding DSGAsia in 1999, Simon was Managing Director and Chief Economist for Asia at Swiss Bank Corporation (subsequently SBC Warburg and then UBS) in Hong Kong. Assuming this role in 1994, he was responsible for developing and spearheading the bank’s macroeconomic research product for the region including Japan, Non-Japan Asia and Australasia. He is generally recognised as one of the few analysts who accurately predicted both the Asian and the more recent global economic and financial crisis, and during his time on the sell-side he was consistently voted as one of the top ranked regional macro analysts across a range of industry surveys. Simon trained as an actuary with William M Mercer Fraser. He subsequently moved into funds management with the United Bank of Kuwait in London before joining GT Management in Hong Kong in 1990. Simon gained his PhD in Economics from the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies. He also holds an MSc in Management and Finance from the University of London’s Imperial College, and a BA in Economics and Econometrics from the University of Manchester.
Stephen Olson Research Fellow at Hinrich Foundation
Stephen Olson Research Fellow at Hinrich Foundation Stephen Olson is a Research Fellow at the Hinrich Foundation. Over the course of his 25 year international career, Stephen has lived and worked in Asia, the Middle East, and the United States, holding senior executive positions in the private sector, international organizations, government, and academia. He began his career in Washington DC as an international trade negotiator, and served on the US negotiating team for the NAFTA negotiations. He subsequently became President of the Hong Kong-based Pacific Basin Economic Council, and Vice Chairman of Cairo-based ARTOC Group for Investment and Development. Currently, he is also a Visiting Scholar at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. He has a Master's Degree in international relations from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, and has a B.A. from the State University of New York.
Pete Sweeney Asia Editor, Reuters Breakingviews at Thomson Reuters Hong Kong Ltd
Pete Sweeney Asia Editor, Reuters Breakingviews at Thomson Reuters Hong Kong Ltd Asia Editor Pete Sweeney joined Reuters Breakingviews in Hong Kong in September 2016. Previously he served as Reuters' chief correspondent for China Economy and Markets, running teams in Shanghai and Beijing; before that he was editor of China Economic Review, a monthly magazine focused on providing news and analysis on the mainland economy. Sweeney came to China as a Fulbright scholar in 2008, and in that role conducted research on the Chinese aviation industry and outbound M&A. In prior incarnations he helped resettle refugees in Atlanta, covered the European Union out of Brussels, and took a poorly timed swing at craft beer entrepreneurship in Quito even as the Ecuadorian currency collapsed (not his fault). He speaks Mandarin Chinese, at the expense of his Spanish.