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Sara Hsu

Sara Hsu

Dr. Sara Hsu is an expert in Chinese fintech, economic development, informal finance, and shadow banking. She is the author of “China’s Fintech Explosion.”

Sara Hsu is a Clinical Associate Professor of Supply Chain Management at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. Prior to that, she was an Associate Professor of Economics at the State University of New York at New Paltz.

Dr. Hsu specializes in Chinese supply chains, fintech, economic development, informal finance, and shadow banking. She has published one of the only English-language books on the topic of Chinese fintech, “China’s Fintech Explosion,” and informal finance, “Informal Finance in China: American and Chinese Perspectives,” as well as one of the only Chinese-language books on Chinese shadow banking. She has also published a number of articles and books on the topics of sustainable development, financial crises, and trade.

Sara Hsu earned her Ph.D. from the University of Utah, her MBA from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, and her BA from Wellesley College.
Posts by Sara Hsu
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April 04, 2022

China’s Wealth Management Products Still Going Strong – For Better or Worse

By Sara Hsu
WMPs have become a regular part of China’s financial system, but the systemic risks remain.
February 15, 2022

China’s Financial Standardization Plan Does Not Reduce Funding Barriers

By Sara Hsu
While the plan is useful in continuing to regulate China’s growing financial landscape, it does nothing to alter China’s trajectory of channeling funds to the state sector.

January 23, 2022

China’s Transportation Plan Will Boost Post-Pandemic Logistics

By Sara Hsu
As China’s infrastructure improves further, it’s going to be harder than ever for U.S. multinationals to move to underdeveloped countries like Vietnam and Indonesia.

January 03, 2022

China’s Core Economic Issues in 2022

By Sara Hsu
The real estate downturn and inflation will cause headaches in the new year, while the emphasis on common prosperity continues.

December 16, 2021

China’s Long-Term Economic Direction

By Sara Hsu
Xi Jinping has been clear that China’s old economic model is a thing of the past. The new one, however, is only starting to take shape.
November 23, 2021

China’s Risky Investments: Wealth Management Products and Corporate Bonds

By Sara Hsu
Recent missed payments show why these are some of the riskiest assets in China.

November 09, 2021

Introducing the New Beijing Stock Exchange

By Sara Hsu
China’s third stock exchange is geared toward financing start-ups, but it is unlikely to prevent overseas listings.  
November 02, 2021

China’s Supply Chain Bottlenecks: Winners and Losers

By Sara Hsu
While manufacturers are losing out, logistics companies are making record profits.

September 29, 2021

Western Investors Are Divided on Buying Chinese Assets, With Good Reason

By Sara Hsu
Two related issues are plaguing investors: debt risks for Chinese firms and the uncertainty as to if, when, and how China will regulate particular sectors.

September 20, 2021

Evergrande Is a Symptom, Not Cause, of China’s Debt Woes

By Sara Hsu
Due to structural flaws in China's financial system, there will likely be other Evergrandes in the future.

September 07, 2021

China’s Crackdown on Private Equity Funds

By Sara Hsu
The private equity fund industry posed serious enough financial risks that additional oversight was necessary.
August 26, 2021

China’s Communist ‘Common Prosperity’ Campaign

By Sara Hsu
The “common prosperity” ideology is the realization of Chinese socialism imposed upon market-based, modern activity, which makes it especially hard for investors to interpret.

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