Founder of Trade Without Borders TWB Joseph Fernandez set up the organization purely for charitable purpose TWBs mission is to extend trading services of the United States to nongovernment organizations NGOs in developing regions of the world To execute the mission in a financially viable and sustainable manner Joseph was thinking to establish a base of operations in Hong Kong which was proximal to their working manufacturers of the product supplies in China A lot of questions came to Josephs mind which organization would TWB incorporate And prior to this what would be the strategy and daily operations of the proposed China entity How to ensure the proposed operations contribute to instead of hindering he primary social mission of the organization
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This case traces the sustainable development (SD) journey undertaken by Hong Kong’s flagship carrier, Cathay Pacific Airways, to bring environmental issues from the periphery to the core of the organization. In 2012, the airline set 20 SD targets to be achieved by 2020. It soon realized that integrating sustainable practices into the overall strategy was vital for the long-term viability of the business. The key challenge for the airline’s Environmental Affairs Department was twofold—to embed sustainability into the mainstream thinking of the organization, and to align environmental and social initiatives that cut across all departments with the overall business goals of the airline.
Bloom & Grow is a regional distributor of maternity, baby, and children’s products. The company was founded in 2004 by a mother who was having problem finding reliable, high-quality products for herself and her first baby. The company grew from a one-person venture into a pan-Asian enterprise with five warehouses.
Neat is a financial technology fintech startup in Hong Kong that offers a basic alternative to those who had previously found it difficult to open bank accounts and access credit in Hong Kong Having successfully launched a personal account in 2015 the company is facing the classic question of how to expand in a fastgrowing and constantly evolving new industry challenging established incumbents that have strong brands and image recognition In the Fall of 2017 Neat evolved from its introduction of personal accounts to the launch of business accounts Neat management was deciding how to take the business forward and most importantly how to develop profits The students are asked to take the viewpoint of David Rosa and the Neat management and decide how to move forward in this environment
A follow up chapter of this case is available as The Neat Account: Fintech Innovation in Hong Kong (Part II)
In 2012, Strategic Global Capital (“SGC”) was founded by Bryan Kuhn, his wife Cathy and his mother Dorothy as a secondary debt market for micro finance notes. Using the founders’ money, SGC launched a pilot program in Ecuador that proved their concept worked. Leveraging on their success, Bryan and his family wanted to further expand the business. In order to grow SGC with the most optimal capital structure Bryan and his family would need to consider all the existing financial conditions and potential risks. What would be the best overall capital structure in terms of the proportion and type(s) of debt and equity that should be utilized by the company? How (or should) the company raise equity based capital? How (or should) the company raise debt based capital?
This case is based on Citibank’s consumer banking business in Hong Kong which aims to capture the impact of emerging fintech technologies and its impact on consumer banking behavior. The case explains about fintech, its evolution, especially in China and Hong Kong, and dives deeper into the three areas where Citibank product delivery could be enhanced using technology: basic transactional services, value-added services and, lastly, being able to provide a fintech ecosystem that would allow greater engagement with customers.
This case is focused on the ongoing rejuvenation of Citibank’s cornerstone product in Hong Kong, Citigold, first launched in 1982. Citibank strived to be the market leader in priority banking products offered to high net worth individuals (HNWIs). For HNWIs, Citibank followed a segment-led strategy based on the customer’s account balance around which Citi Priority, Citigold and Citigold Private Client products were formulated. Out of the three, Citigold focused on the emerging-affluent segments and offered them exclusive services that were based on three tenets of the product: sophisticated financial planning products, dedicated relationship managers and unparalleled privilege that allowed a Citigold customer to enjoy elevated banking status with Citibank. As Citigold was one of the first products of its kind in the market, it contributed to the premium image of Citibank over other banks in Hong Kong. However, over the years competition had caught up and offered products very similar to Citigold, eroding their once unique value proposition. Combining the commoditization of their product and changing consumer preferences in Hong Kong, the market share of Citibank in Hong Kong was threatened. Citigold customers, which made up 30% of the entire Citibank consumer base, contributed to 80% of the bank’s revenue. In 2017, the bank looked to protect its position in the market and to craft a strategy that would address the current challenging environment in priority banking products.
Fat Angelos was a well-established and renowned family style Italian restaurant chain in Hong Kong. Its popularity, however, created challenges. One daily example was the queues the restaurants encountered during their peak dinner periods. Long waits resulted in dissatisfied or even lost customers. On the other hand, during non-peak hours the restaurants was at less than full capacity, meaning lost revenue opportunities. To help bring in additional customers during off-peak hours, the company was considering various measures, including early bird discounts and a new promotional opportunity with online voucher company Groupon.
The objective of the case is for instructors to teach students how to analyze the strategic situation of a company and use this analysis to evaluate alternative strategic moves for a company.
China’s e-commerce market overtook the United States market and reported the highest online transaction value in 2013, growing at over 50% per annum. JD.com is the largest independent e-retailer, a key player in the industry, with a unique, differentiated position.
The case takes place just as JD.com is preparing for its IPO on the NASDAQ. The case presents the four developmental directions that JD.com CEO Richard Liu had laid out. The direct competitive threat is from Alibaba’s Taobao and its T-Mall marketplace, the 10-ton gorilla of China’s e-commerce sector. It also contains information on JD.com’s unique logistics backbone, its pre-IPO financials, and the company’s plans to become a public company.