For a fascinating insight into the ‘overseas’ Chinese,
check out “The Spirit of Chinese Capitalism” (Redding, G.
1990). The overseas Chinese (originating mostly from
Southern China) account for a huge part of the economic
activity across SE Asia (at least 50m Chinese in these
economies) especially in banking, property, construction,
mining, export/import trade and manufacturing. Business
relationships transcend national borders – it truly is one
single ecosystem unto itself. It is generally acknowledged
that they run their businesses more shrewdly
than ‘indigenous’ entepreneurs, e.g. gross return on equity
for Philippino firms in late 80′s was 148% vs 84% for
Chinese and Non-Chinese firms. The smarter enterprises in
Ireland will learn learn from the Chinese with their
Confucian work ethic, their ability to network in a global
world and their lack of complacency.

As a related point, this raises the interesting topic of
how capitalism varies across regions. Quite a few academics
agree that there are broadly 5-6 different variations, viz,
US (shareholder value), Europe (community), China (family
wealth), Japan (employment), Korea (state development).
Consequently, your typical Chinese firm will not see the
capital markets as the end goal and destination. They will
not be slaves to short term results, rather long term
family position. Businesses are run as a family business
(or a closely knit inner circle of business partners)
connected through personal ties (guanxi) and
paternalistically run (the Confucian influence).

So if New Ireland capitalism lands somewhere between that
of the US and Europe, then what an intriguing dynamic we
have ahead of us! New Ireland merchant princes driven by
the unfettered capital markets in cohorts with long term
thinking Confucian family empires. Dublin city….where the
West truly meets the East!

Rgds,
Tom

Forbes Magazine identified the four Filipino billionaires
as Lucio Tan, with a net worth of US$1.7 billion; Henry
Sy, US$1.5 billion; George Ty, US$1.1 billion; and Jaime
Augusto Zobel de Ayala and family, US$1 billion. The
combined wealth of these Filipino billionaires amounted to
about US$5.3 billion or almost 7 percent of the country’s
GDP of US$75.2 billion in 2001. The first three
billionaires were immigrants from China while Ayala was a
scion of an aristocratic Spanish clan.

The Sino influence on Dublin is most evident on Parnell st
with a hidden social network of people from the same areas
in China running the place. They even have Chinese names
for the streets. Moore Street is Widow Street because of
how Moore sounds like widow in Chinese. There were plans
for a Chinatown on the Southside parallel to Grafton
street but no agreement was reached between the (Chinese)
social powers that be and one just naturally mushroomed on
the northside.

Most Chinese her are from Dalien, Shenyang or cities in
Jilin Province. All northern Chinese from the rust belt
in North Eastern China.

The way they operate is identical to how the Irish operate
(d) in New York and Boston. including protection rackets
a la mafia. Instead of concentrating on buying assets
that are really debts they have little access to Irish
banks for money and turn internally to lenders and are
keen to start a business, make a profit and get rid of the
debt as soon as possible.

The Chinese have a totally opposite value to money than
the natives. Cash, not debt is king. If you see a
Chinese driving a Mercedes you can be almost certain that
he has bought it with cash or sold assets to buy it
instead of going cap in had to his bank manager. Which is
why I would question the Irish banks attitude to the
Chinese in the first place. A narrow minded bandying of
all foreigners together as a bad credit risk when in fact
certain sectors are historically as an ethnic group are a
lesser risk. The banks would have to wise up to this
growing economic force before they wake up one morning as
a regional offshoot to the China Construction Bank because
the American economy fell over and we then ative Irish
can’t pay for second and third houses in Timbuktoo and
Antartica and defaulted on the Ferrari repayments.

A final note. In a respected provate business school in
Dublin 9 out of the top 10 performing students in third
year studying Accounting and Finance are Chinese. Chinese
girls. They may be picking up glasses in the pub or
cleaning your office after work now but these people are
even more determined to succeed than the debt ridden
riding-the-crest-of-a-wave Irish.