Читать книгу Financial Cold War. A View of Sino-US Relations from the Financial Markets онлайн

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From the outside in, HKEX in those days looked like a sleepy and bureaucratic organisation. On my first day in the office, I discovered that the company did not have international direct dialling from the desktop phones. To make an overseas call, you had to find a secretary to come and input a long series of codes before being able to dial out. The first-round bids for the LME were due in a couple of weeks. When I got home that night, I told my wife that I would be able to resume my time off after that. Famous last words…

HKEX was then in the early stages of a transformation to broaden its focus from stock trading. Notwithstanding the company's inexperience in international takeovers, the then Chairman and CEO were determined to win the race to acquire the LME. In the latter stages of the transaction, I was asked whether I might stay on in a full-time position. My wife was sceptical about the idea. We were thinking about starting a family and working for the Exchange would involve a meaningful pay cut. However, somehow it just felt like the right move.