Andy Rothman Keynote Speaker

Andy Rothman is widely regarded as one of the sharpest investment strategists today on China. He has a unique perspective on China in the asset management industry.

Andy advises institutional investors and companies on the opportunities and risks presented by China’s economy, and on the impact of changes in US-China relations. He is a frequent speaker at conferences and board meetings, on topics such as prospects for the Chinese economy; US-China relations; China-Taiwan relations; and the global impact of China’s economy.

Andy is a Senior China Fellow with the Asia Society of Northern California.  He is also a member of the board of directors of the Coral Tree Education Foundation.

In 2000, Andy began his private sector career, helping institutional investors and companies understand China’s rapidly changing economic environment. For 14 years, he was the Shanghai-based China macro strategist for CLSA, an institutional brokerage and investment group. After living and working in China for more than 20 years, in 2014 Andy moved to California to become the China strategist for Matthews Asia, one of the largest, active, US-based investors in China’s equity markets. His clients included global wealth managers, pension funds, endowments, family offices, private banks and sovereign wealth funds. In 2025, he established Sinology LLC.

Andy’s 17-year, China-focused career as a US Foreign Service Officer included serving as the Taiwan desk officer at the State Department in the mid-90s, when China fired missiles near Taiwan. His final diplomatic role was head of the macroeconomics and domestic policy office at the American embassy in Beijing.

Andy first went to China as a student in 1980, just a few years after Mao’s death and the end of the Cultural Revolution. In 1984 he began his diplomatic career in Guangzhou, as Deng Xiaoping launched his economic and social reforms.  He also attended China’s first rock concert, by Wham!