Angela Chao

Angela Chao is Chair and C.E.O. of Foremost Group, an American shipping company with headquarters in New York.

Foremost Group is an industry leader in incorporating fuel-efficient designs and technology in its fleet of modern and eco-friendly bulk carriers and has a worldwide reputation for its commitment to reliability, exceptional performance and high ethical standards.

Before joining Foremost Group, Angela Chao worked in the Mergers & Acquisitions Department of Smith Barney, now a part of Morgan Stanley. She holds an undergraduate degree from Harvard where she graduated magna cum laude in three years and earned her MBA degree from Harvard Business School. After Harvard Business School, she rejoined Foremost Group, first concentrating on the fundamentals of ship operations and ship management while overseeing the implementation of Foremost’s Safety Management System to comply with the International Safety Management (ISM) Code and then in later years, the fleet’s Vessel Security Plans in compliance with the IMO’s International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) Code. In 2018, she was named Chair and C.E.O. of Foremost Group.

Angela serves on a number of public and nonprofit boards, including Co-Chair of The Asian-American Foundation’s TAAF Advisory Council, Harvard Business School’s Board of Dean’s Advisors, the American Bureau of Shipping Council, Massachusetts Maritime Academy’s International Maritime Business Department Advisory Board, the Founding Board Council of the Museum of Contemporary Art, The Chairman’s Council of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Metropolitan Opera, the National Committee of US-China Relations, the Shanghai Mulan Education Foundation, the Ruth Mulan Chu Chao Foundation, and Foremost Foundation. She is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, serves on the “The Young Leaders Forum” of the National Committee on US-China Relations, as well as the Honorary Chairperson of the Chiao-Tung University Alumni Association in America. Previously, Angela served on the Boards of Bank of China, American Ballet Theatre’s Global Council, Carnegie-Tsinghua Center for Global Policy Board of Advisors, the New York City Economic Development Corporation, Lincoln Center Global’s China Advisory Council, Museum of Modern Art PS1, the Hospital for Special Surgery’s International Advisory Board, the China State Shipbuilding Corporation, the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade and the Executive Committee of the Baltic International Maritime Council (BIMCO).

Her philanthropic activities are a natural outgrowth of her parents’ upbringing who instilled in their six daughters a strong work ethic and sense of obligation to give back to the community. As a Texan, she is an ardent supporter of many of America’s most iconic cultural institutions, especially in the arts and opera.