Banking on literature
Hang Seng chief Andrew Fung has found his love of the classics has come in handy when communicating in his competitive world
By day, Hang Seng Bank director Andrew Fung Hau-chung lives the life of a high-flying financier. By night, the works of Shelley or Shakespeare are more likely to preoccupy him than currency cross rates or bond swaps.
The veteran banker, who now heads Hang Seng's investment, insurance and treasury operations, has seen many ups and downs in the city's banking industry.
In fact, every time interest rates move or when Beijing announces new plans about yuan trading, his phone rings hot from reporters wanting a "quote".
Few would guess that his early ambitions were far removed from the world of ledgers and loans.
Born and raised as the only child of an accountant father, the young Fung studied English literature and translation at the University of Hong Kong.
Besides Shakespeare, he likes Jacobean playwrights such as John Webster and John Ford. His graduation paper was an analysis of the English translation of the classic Chinese novel The Story of the Stone and the names of the principal female characters.