ChinaLux Celebrates 10th Anniversary with Royal Gala Dinner

On Tuesday 6 June 2023, the China-Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce in Luxembourg (ChinaLux) celebrated its tenth anniversary with a gala dinner at the Cercle Cité in Luxembourg-Ville.

Around 250 members and guests attended this formal event, the special guest being His Royal Highness Prince Guillaume, the Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg.

Following a welcome aperitif, the formal part of the evening got underway, with speeches and videos, all in English, compered by Jacques Bortuzzo, Vice-President at ChinaLux.

The brief video - presented on various screens throughout the large room - presented a chronological and pictorial review of the decade of ChinaLux, in particular mentioning collaborations and partnerships along the way including, for example, with the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce.

Xie Zhujun, President at ChinaLux, spoke about celebrating the tenth anniversary of the chamber and the tireless efforts that have gone into running the chamber and organising events. The celebration was a chance, she went on, to recognise the efforts of the committee and advisory board members, as well as the Chinese Ambassador to Luxembourg, partners and sponsors. She then toasted the chamber's ten-year achievements.

Hua Ning, Chinese Ambassador to Luxembourg, said he was honoured to help celebrate the tenth anniversary. He referred to 2023 being the Year of the Rabbit which signifies growth and prosperity. He referred to the pandemic, China's economic growth and eradicating extreme poverty. He recalled Luxembourg being one of the first members of the Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank and stressed that Luxembourg is the first place that China goes for investments. He described ChinaLux as dynamic. He described Luxembourg as a small and smart country and talked about joining hands together to create more certainty going forward.

Carlo Thelen, CEO at the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce, recalled ten years ago when ChinaLux was founded and explained that the chamber has become the most important reference for networking. He also referenced the seven Chinese banks operating in Luxembourg as well as other companies operating in the Grand Duchy in which China has invested. He also mentioned the annual Chinese New Year event hosted by the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce which has become a not-to-be missed event. He concluded by mentioning that another Luxembourg trade mission to China will take place after the general election in October 2023.

Rupert Hoogewerf, Chairman of the Hurun Report, spoke also in Luxembourgish and Mandarin, but most of his presentation was in English. He talked about "China: A Global Hub of Unicorns" and mentioned that the past three years have seen the fastest growth of unicorns, with 300+ in China today. Five of the top 10 Unicorns are in China, including TikTok, the Ant Group, Shein and WeBank, compared to Celonis, Mollie, N26, Personio, Doctolib, etc., in Europe. In the last year, 508 Unicorns have been created (worldwide). While the US leads the way, China is second with the Rest of the World (including Europe) third. With San Francisco and New York the top two startup cities, Beijing is third where China's focus is in AI, semiconductors, etc. He concluded by addressing wealth generation and the number of dollar billionaires (the Rich List), with the most in China.

Nicolas Mackel, CEO at Luxembourg for Finance, gave a speech by video as he was in Shanghai on business. He said that China has become the main trading partner of 120+ countries. Regarding Luxembourg, he referenced the seven Chinese banks here, as well as Luxembourg's role in investment funds and its stock exchange. He recalled the pandemic getting in the way of being able to make person-to-person contacts; he called for more dialogue and mentioned the Finance minister visiting China recently. He concluded by congratulating ChinaLux on its tenth anniversary.

A formal cake-cutting ceremony to mark the tenth anniversary was then held before the three-course dinner of scallops, chicken with foie gras and cake was served, followed by tea and coffee.