More young Chinese signing up to be investment managers

Editor's Note: This year marks the 40th anniversary of China's reform and opening-up. China Daily interviewed top executives of well-known multinational companies for their views on the country's socioeconomic development.

Please use three words to describe China's changes in the past 40 years.

"Can do" attitude. The one thing that has always impressed me about China is the people's ability to achieve what they set their minds to.

The 40 years since China introduced the reform and opening-up policy have seen a complete transformation of China, from the country's role on the world stage to the living standards of ordinary people, from the cities to the countryside. And all of this has been achieved, thanks to the hard work and dedication of the people.

What are the biggest achievements in China since the introduction of the reform and opening-up policy 40 years ago?

The strides that China has made in ensuring balanced and sustainable growth have been remarkable, and I believe China deserves a great deal of credit for having the wisdom and foresight to put such an outlook on growth at the center of its strategy for economic and social development.

Lifting hundreds of millions of people out of poverty in the span of just a few decades－that's an achievement that no other nation in the history of the world can match. To see the Chinese people's standard of living rise so dramatically in such a short span of time is something that would have been unimaginable to many when reform and opening-up first began.

How has your company benefited from the reform and opening-up policy?

The CFA Institute stands for creating an environment where investors' interests come first, markets function at their best, and economies grow.

China's continued reforms in the financial sector have gone hand in hand with this goal. These reforms have unleashed enormous potential to help both increase and safeguard the wealth of the country, and in doing so ensure the prosperity and continued development of China, benefiting all of its people.

As a global institution for investment management professionals, our mission is to lead the investment profession globally by promoting the highest standards of ethics, education and professional excellence for the ultimate benefit of society.

The CFA Institute and our role in China have grown and matured along with the industry. I've been pleased to see rising numbers of young people signing up to take the CFA examination in recent years, a trend that stands out among the many markets where we operate globally.

China's young people today are eager to build their credentials and bolster their talents. They are very optimistic about the future, both their own and that of their country.

Has competition intensified between your company and Chinese companies?

Our goal at the CFA Institute is to contribute to the development of the financial talents and investment industry here in China, so I see the growth and development of local firms and institutions as a sign of progress. I've been very pleased personally to see how this industry has grown and matured since I first returned in 1986 to run a global financial company's China business.

At the CFA Institute, we believe we are in a unique position to bring our global professional knowledge and best practices to support China's financial and investment management industry development and growth, assisting to develop and strengthen industry standards, and to cultivate local industry talents.

How do you view China's role in the world today?

Today, we are seeing China's growing integration within the international community, as well as China's rising influence in determining the future trends of the world's progress.

This is a phenomenon that we at CFA Institute experience every day in our work. We consider it our mission to help Chinese investment professionals to participate more fully with the industry on a global level, and bring the level of these Chinese professionals and their institutions in line with global standards. But in this process, we are clearly seeing a rising standing and reputation of China's investment industry on the world stage, and seeing Chinese talents playing a greater role in shaping the future of this industry.

I believe that such a twoway interaction will have a profound and positive impact for the industry as a whole, and I look forward to seeing more of what Chinese professionals can contribute.

Could China's experiences and practices be used to solve global problems?

I am continually impressed by the inventiveness, curiosity, innovative spirit and enthusiasm of our CFA charterholders, as well as the many young talented minds in the investment industry in general. This has made me very optimistic about not only China's future, but the future of our world, as Chinese companies and institutions play an increasingly large role globally.

I think that these bright minds and optimistic, dedicated spirits can do much to inject new life into the industry, and bring fresh approaches to solving problems that countries all around the world are grappling with today.

Apart from economic development, what progress in other fields have you witnessed in China in the past 40 years?

I think that China's growing influence in the world is something that many people acknowledge and are eagerly following, but many are not paying enough attention to the deeper story. This remarkable growth of China's international presence is, I believe, due not only to the country's economic might, but more importantly due to the fact that China has a unique, insightful and longterm vision for global development and greater global integration.

It is the strength of China's ideas, rather than simply the strength of China's economy, that is increasingly influential in mapping the future of the global order, and I believe we will only see this trend develop and mature more in the years to come.