GWA ASIA: China as a Gateway to Asia
When GWA was founded in Shanghai in 2004, our objective was simple: helping international companies understand China and navigate a market that, at the time, was still unfamiliar territory for many foreign investors. Over the years, however, something interesting happened. As our clients became more established in China, they naturally began looking beyond its borders.
New projects emerged in Southeast Asia, Japan, Korea, and other parts of the region. As their ambitions expanded, so did ours. What started as a boutique advisory firm focused on China gradually evolved into a broader Asian platform.
Not because we had a predefined expansion plan, but because we chose to follow our clients wherever their growth was taking them. One of the aspects we are most proud of is that this journey has never been about offices alone. It has always been about people. Alongside Founder and Managing Partner Giovanni Pisacane, Managing Partner Daniele Zibetti, Partner Marta Snaidero and Partner Filippo Sticconi helped shape the firm’s growth and leadership structure, while a new generation of professionals joined across the region, bringing local expertise, international perspectives, and a shared entrepreneurial spirit.
Today, colleagues such as Andrea Monni in Singapore, Alberto Innocenti in Hong Kong, Giulio Elefante in Ho Chi Minh City, Giovanna Bregant in Suzhou, together with Anastasia Del Prete and the ODI Projects Team, represent just a few examples of the talent that continues to strengthen GWA across Asia.
GWA now brings together more than 40 professionals operating across Asia, Europe, and North America, with offices and platforms in Barcelona, Bangkok, Beijing, Bergamo, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong, Milan, New York, Shanghai, Singapore, Suzhou, and Tokyo. Looking back, one of the most rewarding aspects of this journey has been growing alongside our clients.
Their expansion into new markets has often inspired our own, creating relationships built on trust, continuity, and shared ambition. For this reason, we were particularly proud to receive the “China as a Gateway to Asia” Award from the China-Italy Chamber of Commerce during the 2026 Panda d’Oro Awards in Shanghai. We see this recognition not simply as an acknowledgment of our firm’s growth, but of a journey shared with our clients, partners, and colleagues over more than two decades.
Perhaps the most rewarding achievement is not the number of offices or the geographic footprint we have built. It is the fact that many clients who first approached us for a single project in China twenty years ago continue to work with us today throughout Asia
