As the melting pot of New York City continues to flourish and diversify, several Asian network groups and associations have come into form in the last decade.
One of the reasons for this growth has been the surge of the Asian population in New York, which added “247,900, a climb of 31.8%” from 2000 to 2010, according to a Wall Street Journal article: Blacks Leave City as Asians Propel Growth, (3-25-11), written by Joseph De Avila and Sumathi Reddy that was based on their analysis of the 2010 Consensus.
“Asian and Hispanic populations spiked between 2000 and 2010, transforming the city’s racial landscape. But the number of black New Yorkers dropped 5%, the first dip in that group since 1860. There were fewer whites, as well,” the article stated.
This begins to explain why the Korean Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), a 51-year-old organization, has evolved as a cross-border investment promotion platform that began to support technology and industrial cooperation projects in 1995, and then made a fundamental push into information technology in 2003. Since then, KOTRA hosts frequent sector-focused panel discussions in New York on legal expertise, media, technology, entrepreneurship, and investment with guest speakers from Korea and New York.
Then there are the new organizations that bring Asia to America in business, investment opportunity, and technology. One such group, the Asian Business Network, which is supported by several Asian-focused non-profit organizations, takes it a step further. It adds culture in the form of food and live performances to the mix of finance and technology.
It also has 13,000 active members and will host its next event at the Asia Society on November 14 called Asian Economic & Financial Conference.
In 2006, James Li, who grew up in Queens, founded the Asian Business Network (ABN) of New York City. With a passion for computers and a degree in Information Systems Engineering at Stony Brook University, he became focused in the finance and technology scene of the mid 1990s.
The Bridge of Asian Business Network
“We are working with government agencies from a number of Asian countries to create business networking events, including Hong Kong, China, Singapore, India and Japan,” James Li said. “Our teams focus on the business networking aspect of the events, while our guests and attendees enjoy the quality food samples and short presentations. We work to actively introduce companies to potential business partners and customers.”
Asian Business Network events build a bridge for seasoned corporations to connect with emerging Asian markets and businesses through cultural and professional connections. The aim is to build long-term relationships, share corporate values, value propositions, and customer relationships with the Asian-American community.
On speakers: Asian Business Network (ABN) hosted in the past, James Li said, “In the past, our networking events had executives and directors from the New York Mercantile Exchange, the International Latino Chamber of Commerce, and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council.”
On seminars: “ABN seminars cover many financial topics related to international trade between American companies and companies from Asian countries and communities.
During the November and January events, the emphasize will be on International trade, as well as development topics. “We are also promoting the Asia Financial Forum 2014 and Doing Business in Hong Kong, China and Japan,” Li said.
On January 10, 2014, ABN will host the Asian Business Investment Conference Cultural Festival at Capital NY in the lower eastside.
The Asian Business Network was founded to provide a marketplace for Asian Americans, to find business partners in New York City. “We actively help individuals to find new business partners and customers. Recently we have created two large networking events in November and January to promote business partnerships between Asian businesses and American companies,” James Li said, adding, “We also help American companies to grow their business and find partnerships in the Asian community. Our Asian business events are created together with the government agencies of Asian countries, including Hong Kong, China, South Korea and Japan.
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