John D. Kuhns Launches "China Fortunes: A Tale of Business in the New World"

Lime Rock, CT (PRWEB) January 5, 2011

John D. Kuhns, Chairman & CEO of China Hydroelectric Corporation, China's largest owner of small hydroelectric projects; of Kuhns Brothers, an investment bank raising money for Chinese companies; and of the China Hand Fund, a private equity fund investing in Chinese companies; is announcing the launch of his new novel, "China Fortunes: A Tale of Business in the New World" published by Wiley. (ISBN 978-0-470-92804-2)

A modern but timeless global business story in the spirit of James Clavell, "China Fortunes" is a vast and sweeping tale addressing one of today's hottest topics--doing business in China.

Taking readers on the ground from China's early opening up to current times, China Fortunes: A Tale of Business in the New World traces the changes of fortune and cultural edification of Jack Davis, an American financier lured by the spectacular promise of the confusing land, from early success and a meteoric IPO that seems too easy, to treachery and loss, and triumphant financial and emotional renewal.

• Describes the difficulties and ambivalence awaiting those foreigners brave or foolish enough to try to do business in a land that has only hesitantly embraced capitalism while gleefully gobbling up a majority of the world's direct investment
• Follows the money in glittering multi-national deals, from the bond trading floors of Wall Street to the opaque world of investment boutiques, IPOs, market crashes and business failures.
• Stops along the way in the PRC's capitals--Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong, or 'Fake China'--and visits the feudal but enchanting reality of the country's back roads.
• Portrays the human dimensions--the greed and venality, as well as the tenderness and beauty--that have both cautioned and beguiled those interested in China and its culture forever.

Drawing on the experiences of one of the first western entrepreneurs and investment bankers to do business in China, this exciting tale makes you hold your breath, hoping for fortune but risking it all, taking the same gamble facing every business person visiting the Middle Kingdom since Marco Polo. "Reality is disappointing, Jack," the book explains. "China is better."

JOHN D. KUHNS is a financier and industrialist who has been doing business in China for over twenty-five years. In 1984, as the founder and CEO of Catalyst Energy Corporation, Mr. Kuhns was the first American to acquire commercial hydroelectric generating equipment from China, powering much of the profitability behind the company's successful IPO and listing on the New York Stock Exchange. Having closed IPOs for five companies including some of the world's leading alternative energy businesses, Mr. Kuhn's most recent transaction was the January 2010 IPO for China Hydroelectric Corporation, China's largest owner of small hydroelectric projects, where he currently serves as Chairman and CEO. Kuhns Brothers, Mr. Kuhn's investment bank, raises financing for Chinese companies, and his private equity organization, the China Hand Fund, makes investments in Chinese companies. Mr. Kuhns graduated from Georgetown University, received a Master's of Fine Arts from the University of Chicago, and an MBA degree from the Harvard Business School. He lives with his family in Connecticut, where he fly fishes religiously.

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