moving to Hengyang and Chongqing as the progress of the war dictated. In 1945, at the end of the war, he was sent by the Government back to Shanghai to help set up and manage the new Municipal Bank and in a short time had worked his way to Deputy general manager, effectively in charge. Move to Hong Kong With the approaching fall of the "Bamboo Curtain", Pao and all his family had moved to Hong Kong by the spring of 1949, having managed to remit much of the family's assets and money before events made it impossible. It was impossible to resume a banking career and, given the prevailing uncertainties, he did not wish to commit to investing in machinery and land in Hong Kong, so Pao started an Import/Export business dealing in Chinese goods. Following the UN trade embargo resulting from China's entry into the Korean War, the company broadened its scope to Europe, although trade with China continued in a circuitous way through skilful exploitation of legal loopholes in the embargo. It was during the first half of the 1950s that Pao first made contact with Jake Saunders (who was running the Imports Department) and Guy Sayer (also working in the department) at the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation. Both were later to become Chief Manager and Chairman of the bank, and the relationship was to be a decisive element in the growth of Pao's businesses. Founding of World-Wide Shipping As his business grew, Pao looked around for suitable new ventures and in 1955 decided to branch into shipping (still focusing on assets that were not fixed in Hong Kong) and embarked on an intensive learning process. Shipowning in Hong Kong had a poor reputation at that time with the banks and so the first vessel, a 28-year-old coal burning 8,200 tonne freighter, was purchased without finance. Having seen this and the rigorousness employed by Pao in the purchase process, the Hongkong Bank extended a loan for the second purchase, the start of long and fruitful relationship which led to Pao being appointed to the board of the bank in 1971 and later to become its vice-chairman. The shipping business grew rapidly driven by the post war economic miracle taking place in Japan and the resulting need for freight and oil carrying capacity. Pao devised a system whereby he was able to secure bank guaranteed three-year charters