Investment Banker

TANG: "It was apparent that the Asian frontier was going to be very exciting in later decades."

A career that tracks the rise of Asian financial markets

BY HEATHER HARLAN

Wall Street veteran Henry Tang can remember a time when Asian Americans were a rarity in the banking industry. "Back in the '60s, Asians were not involved in those fields," Tang said, recalling when he first began his career. "It was a lily-white world."

Now managing director of a major investment bank, Tang discovered that this exclusivity was even more true in the departments that did business in Asia.

"Banks weren't hiring Asians to do Asian business," he recalls. "They felt the disparities of Asia were something that only non-Asians could mediate--which is obviously false."

Despite such obstacles, Tang persevered. Starting his career at Chemical Bank as a credit analyst in the domestic section, he later moved into the international department.

"It was only due to my own personal initiative," he said. "Once I got in, I worked to change things."

Tang said his Asian heritage and strong interest in Asia helped inspire him.

He grew up in New York speaking fluent Cantonese, which he learned from his parents, who emigrated from Hong Kong. Tang later attended Columbia University, where he studied Asian international affairs. He said it was not a popular subject for Asian Americans to study at the time, but his instincts told him it would be a valuable background, especially for a career in business and finance.

"It was apparent that the Asian frontier was going to be very exciting in later decades," he said.

Tang later moved to Prudential Bache Securities and watched as more Asians entered the field when Japan took on a greater role in the world economy, something that he believes led to a greater willingness to hire Asians.

Tang has also worked for several of the largest Wall Street investment banks, including Salomon Brothers and Shearson Lehman. He currently serves as the managing director of Jefferies & Co.

Fluent in Mandarin and several other Chinese dialects in addition to Cantonese, he frequently travels to Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, and Europe to conduct business.

Despite a busy work schedule, Tang takes time to participate in many public and community activities.

"If you look at the history of Chinese in America, we have a 160-year history; we are all very individualistic," Tang said. "But as a group we have not always had the best organizational capacities. I've always felt that was the missing link. While we have many organizations, we have not always been very good at building institutions."

Five years ago, together with I.M. Pei, Yo-Yo Ma, and a group of other high-profile Chinese Americans, Tang co-founded the Committee of 100, a group of prominent individuals dedicated to fostering greater American and Chinese cultural and economic understanding. He currently serves as co-chairman of the committee.

"It was founded after a strong, demonstrated need in the aftermath of Tiananmen Square, when the media was looking for a dialogue on the subject," he said. "There was a shortage of organized spokespeople to discuss it. We felt that this need would resurface and it has, again and again: the Hong Kong reunification, the fundraising scandal, the visit of President Jiang Zemin. By having an organized and institutionalized pool of people who can speak, it helps Americans understand the other side of the picture and dispels many mistaken myths surrounding Chinese Americans."

Tang has won several awards for his community work, including the Ethnic New Yorker Award given in 1987 by Mayor Edward Koch and the 1994 Ellis Island Medal of Honor.

Several years ago, in recognition of his strong commitment advancing Asian Americans into senior leadership positions in many arenas, former President George Bush appointed him to the Federal Glass Ceiling Commission.

As a senior securities-management executive, he observed and participated in the shift of capital markets from a European and American focus to a more global one in which Asia plays a crucial role--a fact boldly underscored by last week's Asian and American stock market crashes.

Tang said the strength of the Hong Kong dollar was reflected in the market's rebound.

"We are all familiar with the attack on the Southeast Asian currencies in the past two or three months. The Hong Kong dollar was the only one not affected," he said. "But, the Hong Kong dollar is really very strong. There is a strong commitment by the Hong Kong government to defend the Hong Kong dollar.

"Many people didn't understand the Hong Kong dollar," he continued. "It is under very strong footing with $80 billion in domestic reserves in Hong Kong and well over $100 billion in reserves in the People's Republic of China. These are formidable obstacles for people who are looking to challenge currency."

Tang's own take on the crash is that the market was driven primarily by "fear and emotion."

"The Hong Kong dollar has retraced a significant portion of its loss," he explained. "We expect it to retrace back to its previous levels. The Chinese government has demonstrated in only four short months that they are retaining a very arms-length relationship with Hong Kong."

With the confidence befitting an international banking expert, Tang concluded, "Hong Kong is very much in the spotlight. I don't believe the government in Beijing is going to do anything to jeopardize their status."

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