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    Chairman of Prudential Paul Manduca speaking at the Asia House Annual Business & Policy reception held in May 2014. Photo by Miles Willis
    Chairman of Prudential Paul Manduca spoke at the Asia House Annual Business & Policy Reception. Photo by Miles Willis

    Pru Chairman welcomes business leaders and officials to Asia House

    Published On: 19 May 2014

    Senior business leaders joined British and Asian diplomats at the annual Asia House Business & Policy reception.

    Chairman of Prudential Paul Manduca addressed the prestigious gathering by highlighting the work of Asia House in connecting the UK and Asia.

    Mr Manduca, who came straight to the event from the Prudential AGM at Westminster, spoke warmly about the achievements of Asia House and the long-standing relationship between Asia House and Prudential, a founding stakeholder of Asia House alongside HSBC and Standard Chartered Bank.

    Mr Manduca also pointed out the valuable work  of the annual Asia House Pan-Asia Film Festival, of which Prudential is the title sponsor, in bringing together different cultures.

    Nearly 200 senior business leaders, senior government figures and diplomats, including UK and Asian Heads of Mission, Asia House corporate members, members of the Asia House Board of Trustees and members of the Asia House International Advisory Council, attended the high-level networking event on Thursday 15 May, which was was opened by Sir John Boyd, Chairman of Asia House.

    More than 30 Ambassadors and High Commissioners from the UK and Asian countries were present, including Sebastian Wood, UK Ambassador to China; HE Ranjan Mathai, Indian High Commissioner to the UK; HE Enrique Manalo, Ambassador of the Philippines to the UK; and HE Sungnam Lim, South Korean Ambassador to the UK.

    The reception was scheduled to coincide with the British Heads’ of Mission annual return to the UK for the Leadership Conference at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office.

    The annual event, which has become a major fixture in the London diplomatic calendar, offers an excellent opportunity for Asia House corporate members to connect with a group of senior government figures and diplomats.

    Guests included Sir Henry Keswick, Chairman of Jardine Matheson; Eric Zhang, President and CEO of AIG China; Richard Holmes, CEO Europe at Standard Chartered Bank; Lord Browne of Madingley, Managing Director of Riverstone Holdings; David Brennan, CEO and Chairman of Baring Asset Management;  and Bridget Kendall, the BBC’s Diplomatic Correspondent.

    Diageo kindly sponsored the event by providing the wine and cocktails.

    To see a slideshow of the event click below:

    For more information on Asia House corporate membership or our dynamic Business & Policy programme, please get in touch with the Business & Policy team.