Congratulations to Professor Ying Xia and Professor Ying Zhu!

Congratulations to Prof. Ying Xia and Prof. Ying Zhu on their promotion to Associate Professor! 

Prof. Xia is an interdisciplinary scholar whose work focuses on environmental governance and developmental studies, taking a socio-legal approach. She is a leading contributor to the rapidly growing field of environmental governance in China. To read more about Prof. Xia's research and publications, click here.

Prof. Zhu is a distinguished legal scholar specialising in trade and investment, in particular sanctions, compliance, and other cutting-edge fields, working closely with policy-makers at both the national and international levels. To read more about Prof. Zhu's research and publications, click here.

Prof. Ying Xia and Prof. Ying Zhu are valuable members of our Faculty, and this promotion is a well-deserved recognition of their contributions.

Lusina Ho and Hui Jing on The Dominance of Regulatory Oversight in Chinese Investment Trusts (Asia-Pacific Trusts Law, Volume 3)

"The Dominance of Regulatory Oversight in Chinese Investment Trusts"
Lusina Ho and Hui Jing
Asia-Pacific Trusts Law, Volume 3, Boundaries in Context, Part II, Chapter 10
Hart Publishing
Published online: May 2025

Abstract: A fundamental tenet in the relationship between regulations and private law is their functional dichotomy. Private law deals with the adjudication of bilateral rights and duties between individuals. Its main purpose is to protect the rights of individuals from infringement by others. In contrast, regulations primarily serve public interests, and are typically enforced by regulatory agencies through administrative sanctions or criminal liability. In this chapter, we argue that the Chinese legal regime for investment trusts departs from this paradigmatic dichotomy. Regulatory supervision not only addresses public interest concerns, but also frequently displaces private law in resolving disputes amongst trust parties, blurring the boundary between private law and regulations. We examine the unique circumstances in China that account for this regulatory dominance and argue that it can be justified only as a temporary measure.

Following this introduction, Part II discusses the main reason for regulatory dominance in China. We examine how the widespread use of investment trusts for shadow banking raises public interest concerns when private law rights are enforced in such trusts. In Part III, we explore the use and limitations of regulatory supervision to address both the public interest and private law concerns raised by trust (mal)practice. Part IV contends that whilst regulations can be an effective interim measure for addressing private law disputes, legislators should in the long term adopt a proactive approach and enact trust laws that clearly define the rights and responsibilities of the trust parties. Part V concludes.

Full text of this chapter is available on SSRN, please click here.

Frederick Long & Syren Johnstone on Applying ‘Deep ESG’ to Asian Private Equity (Journal of Sustainable Finance & Investment)

"Applying ‘Deep ESG’ to Asian private equity"
 Frederick J. Long & Syren Johnstone
Journal of Sustainable Finance & Investment
Published online in February 2021

Abstract: At this stage of Asia's development there is a need, and an opportunity, to establish a validation methodology that better gauges ESG implementation and sustainability aspirations in Asian private equity. Private equity, like major public market and debt investors such as Blackrock, has adopted language that suggests a proactive approach to ESG management. However, process-oriented ESG compliance presently far outstrips evidence of tangible contributions to ESG objectives and outcomes. This article describes a taxonomy of common approaches to ESG investment practices in Asian private equity and discusses their shortcomings. It then presents ‘Deep ESG’ as an alternative approach that operationalizes ESG and sustainability metrics more holistically than existing frameworks. The Deep ESG framework enables a higher level of market-led intentionality that better informs institutional investors, regulators, communities, and employees as they evaluate private equity's ‘balance sheet’ of ESG outcomes. By investing in tools for goal setting, measurement and evaluation and applying them consistently across all target and portfolio companies, private equity managers can pivot away from a defensive approach by working with stakeholders to shape constructive solutions to urgent sustainability goals.