{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"Ep 4: Cyrus Janssen: The Biggest Lie About China\u2019s Middle Class","description":"Mr. Henderson sits down with China analyst and investor Cyrus Janssen to examine one of the most misunderstood narratives in global economics: the supposed stagnation of China\u2019s middle class. While Western commentary often focuses on decline, debt, and demographic headwinds, the lived economic reality inside China tells a more complex story. From digital infrastructure and consumer confidence to domestic brand dominance and capital flows, structural shifts are underway that investors and policymakers cannot afford to ignore. Rather than debating ideology, this conversation analyzes systems \u2014 how people transact, travel, consume, save, and deploy capital \u2014 and what those behaviors signal about long-term power distribution. In this episode, Andrew and Cyrus discuss: \u25cf Why China\u2019s middle class continues expanding despite persistent narratives of contraction \u25cf The role of digital infrastructure and \u201csuper-app\u201d ecosystems in reshaping daily economic behavior \u25cf What recent equity rebounds reveal about global sentiment gaps and valuation dislocations \u25cf Why younger Chinese consumers are reallocating spending toward experiences over status luxury \u25cf How domestic brands are overtaking Western incumbents across coffee, EVs, technology, and travel \u25cf The implications of rising national confidence for passports, mobility, and outward investment \u25cf Energy production, infrastructure build-out, and China\u2019s strategic push toward consumer self-reliance Rather than predicting collapse or inevitability, this episode explores something more useful: how perception gaps create asymmetric opportunity. Follow Cyrus: Cyrus Janssen About Borders Borders is a long-form audio series hosted by Andrew Henderson, exploring how capital, power, and opportunity are reorganizing beyond the Western mainstream. Each episode features an unscripted conversation with founders, policymakers, investors, and thinkers operating at the edges of conventional narratives. The focus is structural clarity \u2014 not headlines. Produced by Vesper. Hosted by Mr. Andrew J. Henderson: Website   ","author_name":"Borders: Conversations on Global South Capital and Geopolitics","author_url":"https:\/\/vesper.vc\/borders\/","html":"