Li Ming (banker)
Li Ming | |
|---|---|
| Born | Template:Birth date Shaoxing, Zhejiang, China |
| Died | October 22, 1966 (aged 78) |
| Occupation(s) | Banker, entrepreneur |
| Known for | Founder of Chekiang Industrial Bank and Chekiang First Bank Ltd.; Chairman of Shanghai Bankers' Association |
Li Ming (李銘; November 24, 1887 – October 22, 1966) was a trailblazer in Chinese banking and investment sectors. He established the Chekiang Industrial Bank in 1922, initially acting as General Manager and subsequently as Chairman until 1949. In 1950, he launched the Chekiang First Bank Ltd. in Hong Kong and led it as Chairman until his passing in 1966. Over his extensive career, he held more than thirty board positions within banks, industrial enterprises, insurance firms, and public utilities, alongside significant roles in governmental financial institutions. Additionally, he was a founding member and Chairman of the Shanghai Bankers' Association.
Biography
Originating from Shaoxing, Zhejiang, Li Ming was the second son in a family of silver merchants. Following a classical education, he enrolled at Wayland Academy in Hangzhou in 1902 and later pursued studies in banking and commerce at Yamaguchi Commercial College in Japan starting in 1905, supported by a government scholarship. During this period, he completed an internship at the Yokohama Specie Bank, where he acquired crucial experience with international financial practices.
Upon returning to China in 1910, Li took on the role of auditor at the Chekiang Provincial and Industrial Bank located in Hangzhou and by 1911 was managing its Shanghai branch, rapidly growing its operations. Identifying challenges arising from the bank’s quasi-governmental status, he orchestrated a restructuring in 1922 that divided it into two entities: the government-owned Provincial Bank of Chekiang and the privately held Chekiang Industrial Bank based in Shanghai.
As General Manager of Chekiang Industrial Bank, Li prioritized measured growth by limiting expansion to two branches to reduce political exposure. He stressed maintaining liquidity and making prudent investments amid China's absence of a central banking system. Under his guidance, the bank became a pioneer in foreign exchange and international trade services, ranking among China’s top five private banks.
A prominent figure among "Zhejiang Bankers," Li served as Chairman of the Shanghai Bankers Association from 1926 to 1934 and again between 1946 and 1949. From 1927 to 1940, he chaired the National Bonds Sinking Fund Committee overseeing government treasury notes. In 1928, he assumed the Chairmanship of the Board of Directors at the reorganized Bank of China, resigning following its nationalization in 1935. He also held directorships at the Bank of Communications and supervisory responsibilities at the Central Bank of China.
During the financial crisis in Shanghai triggered by the Sino-Japanese conflict in 1932, Li led efforts to establish the Joint Reserve Board under the Shanghai Bankers Association. This body stabilized liquidity by issuing asset-backed notes and founded critical institutions such as the Shanghai Clearing House (1933) and Shanghai Bankers Acceptance House (1936).
Li promoted industrial progress through involvement with the National Industrial Syndicate beginning in 1932, acquiring Hangzhou’s electric company which he modernized while serving as chairman until 1949. He championed partnerships with foreign investors to facilitate joint ventures including acquisitions of Shanghai’s electric power system and telephone company.
Collaborating with American Foreign Power Company, Li played a key role in acquiring Shanghai's electric power infrastructure in 1929. He organized financing syndicates that introduced Western banking techniques—like underwriting and securities issuance—to China’s financial environment. Likewise, he formed syndicates supporting International Telephone and Telegraph Company’s purchase of Shanghai Mutual Telephone Company (1930), maintaining board membership until 1949.
Facing arrest threats from the Japanese-supported Wang Jingwei regime in 1941, Li escaped to the United States where he remained until World War II concluded. While based in New York, he helped establish China Industries Inc., partnering with leading financial institutions such as Lehman Brothers and Rockefeller interests to fund Chinese industrial recovery postwar—though civil conflict ultimately prevented its activation. He also acted as trustee for Peking Union Medical College and China Foundation, advised China’s delegation during the Bretton Woods Conference, and represented Chinese employers at international labor meetings.
Returning to Shanghai in 1946, Li resumed leadership of Chekiang Industrial Bank, which was renamed Chekiang First Bank of Commerce in 1948 following new banking regulations. Briefly chairing the Central Bank of China's Import and Export Control Board during turbulent times, he relocated to Hong Kong in 1949. There he founded Chekiang First Bank Ltd. in August 1950 and served as Chairman until his death in 1966. His second son Li Dexian succeeded him as Chairman from 1966 through 1978.
Family
In 1912, Li Ming wed Wu Huiying (1893–1938) from Hangzhou. She was the daughter of Wu Yanjue, a lawyer and music instructor, and Shu Peiyun, who came from a well-known Hangzhou family involved in fan manufacturing. Their offspring comprised Bessie (Shih Li Yueqing), a financial consultant and pianist who was married to Szeming Sze; Deqing, an electrical engineer educated at MIT who managed power plants in China; Meiqing, a social worker and author of cookbooks married to George Kao; and Dexian, who pursued a career in banking.
Among their relatives, nephew Wu Guanghan was a civil engineer instrumental in the establishment of the China International Trust Investment Corporation (CITIC) alongside Rong Yiren and oversaw significant construction endeavors including CITIC's headquarters in Beijing. Descendants include Chia-Ming Sze, an architect focused on affordable housing solutions for elderly and special needs populations in Boston’s Chinatown. Among the great-grandchildren are David Sze, a prominent venture capitalist and Managing Partner at Greylock Partners, as well as Sarah Sze, a MacArthur Fellow and Professor of Visual Arts at Columbia University.
External links
- 中国工商银行，银行博物馆 Zhongguo gong shang yinhang, Yinhang bowuguan (Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Museum of Finance); 上海市黄浦区复兴中路301号 Shanghai shi Huangpu qu Fuxing zhong lu 301 hao (301 Fuxing Middle Road, Huangpu District, Shanghai); ICBC Museum of Finance Officially Opens (03-14-2016)