China Medical Board

What China Medical Board does

CMB Foundation, legally known as China Medical Board and commonly operating as CMB, is a U.S.-headquartered private philanthropic foundation established in 1914 as part of the Rockefeller Foundation's initiative to advance medical education in China. The organization marked its 110th anniversary in 2024-2025 and traces its earliest work to John Grant and C.C. Chen establishing public health programs at Peking Union Medical College. It operates as a grant-making entity rather than a commercial enterprise, disbursing funds through fellowships, training grants, and institutional support.

The foundation's programmatic portfolio is organized around three core areas: Health Policy and Systems Sciences, Health Professional Education, and a dedicated Southeast Asia Program. Its flagship offerings are fellowship programs — most notably the Equity Initiative Fellowship, which selects mid-career health professionals from Asia and integrates them into the global Atlantic Fellows community through the Atlantic Institute, and a Postdoctoral Research Fellowship launched in May 2024 for U.S. scholars in health professions and biomedical sciences. Operations span China, Southeast Asia (Vietnam, Thailand), Oceania (New Zealand Global Learning), and the United States, with a Bangkok regional office led by Dr. Thaksaphon (Mek) Thamarangsi effective January 1, 2026.

CMB has no commercial products, technology platforms, or revenue-generating services; its operating model is endowment-funded philanthropy. Distribution occurs through direct grant programs targeted at selected scholars, health professionals, and academic institutions via application processes. Marketing and stakeholder engagement are conducted through the cmbfound.org website, biennial reports, news updates, and global learning events. Strategic partnerships include a core programmatic relationship with the Atlantic Institute, a long-standing historical tie to Peking Union Medical College, and grant-funded collaborations such as the EPIC Project's traumatic brain injury training in Vietnam.

Name

China Medical Board

Legal name

CMB Foundation

Website

https://chinamedicalboard.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1914

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

CMB Foundation is a U.S.-based private philanthropic foundation, founded in 1914, that funds health equity fellowships, postdoctoral research, and health professional education programs across Asia and the United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Health Foundation Grants

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Voluntary Health Organizations (813212), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

SIC

Services-Health Services (8000), International Affairs (9721)

akta.pro primary industry

Health & Medical Research Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Research Grants, Fellowships & Stipends (International) (EDAIAOAJ), Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC), Public Health Financing, Budgeting & Grants Management (HLAJAMAC), Global Health Financing Mechanisms (HLAJAKAC)

Keywords

• Philanthropic health grants
• Medical education fellowships
• Health policy research
• Nonprofit health foundation
• Southeast Asia health programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Cambridge

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

China Medical Board is a philanthropic foundation that funds health-related work across Asia through fellowships, competitive grants, and long-term program partnerships. Its grants and fellowships focus on health policy and systems, health professional education, and capacity building at universities, research institutions, and ministries, with particular emphasis on Southeast Asia. The foundation does not sell products or services commercially; it disburses donor-funded resources to advance its mission of improving health outcomes in the region.

Product overview

China Medical Board Foundation operates as a philanthropic organization supporting health improvement across Asia. The organization functions through multiple programmatic areas including Health Policy and Systems Sciences, Health Professional Education, and a Southeast Asia Program. Key offerings include fellowship programs such as the Equity Initiative Fellowship and a new Postdoctoral Research Fellowship for U.S. researchers. The foundation also manages grant programs supporting public health initiatives and publishes resources including biennial reports, news, and publications. The portfolio consists entirely of grant-making programs and fellowship offerings rather than technology products or platforms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Equity Initiative: Fellowship program supported through the Atlantic Institute, part of 7 programs at Atlantic Fellows focused on health equity.
• Atlantic Fellows

Products and services

• Health policy and systems grants program

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 10,000 distinct rare diseases have been identified affecting around 10 percent of people worldwide, with CMB-supported leaders working on these challenges

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Atlantic InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAtlantic Institute supports 7 programs including the Equity Initiative, which CMB participates in. Upon completing their induction year, Equity Initiative Fellows are welcomed into the global community of Atlantic Fellows.
• Peking Union Medical CollegecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHistorical founding partner where CMB's earliest work began with John Grant and C.C. Chen establishing first public health programs. CMB has maintained long-standing support for public health initiatives originating at this institution.
• EPIC (Excellence in Prehospital Injury Care) ProjectminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCMB provided grant support for training courses in Vietnam on emergent management of traumatic brain injury. The EPIC Project has successfully promulgated evidence-focused guidelines for in-hospital and pre-hospital TBI treatment in the United States.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Commonwealth Fund: U.S. private foundation whose mission centers on health policy, health systems performance, and international comparisons. Conceptually parallels CMB's 'Health Policy and Systems Sciences' track, with a much heavier OECD lens.
• The Rockefeller Foundation: The original institutional parent of CMB (1914) and a fellow health-focused private foundation. Closely comparable in mission on global public health, historical operating model, and Asia engagement, with significantly larger scale.
• Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation: U.S. private foundation exclusively dedicated to health professional education – one of the most concentrated matches to CMB's 'Health Professional Education' program area in mission and program structure.
• Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: U.S. health-focused foundation whose portfolio (health leadership, health systems research, equity, professional education) closely mirrors CMB's programmatic mix, though with a U.S.-centric focus rather than Asia-centric.
• Aga Khan Foundation: Long-running private foundation operating health, education, and civil society programs across Asia and other emerging regions. Directly comparable in scale, age profile, multi-decade grantmaking model, and Asia-focused portfolio.
• Atlantic Philanthropies: Founder of the Atlantic Institute that supports the Equity Initiative fellowship CMB participates in. Operates the same multi-program global fellowship ecosystem CMB leverages, and is therefore functionally the closest programmatic peer despite different home geographies.

Broad incumbents

• Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation: The dominant global health philanthropy, with major programs in health policy, systems, and workforce across Asia. Operates at vastly greater scale but with overlapping thematic priorities, making it the most cited comparator for downstream partners.
• Wellcome Trust: Large UK-based health-focused foundation funding biomedical research, fellowships, and global health. Comparable in funding health-professional education and postdoctoral researchers, though with a primarily UK/Global-South emphasis rather than Asia-specific.
• Bloomberg Philanthropies: Large philanthropic vehicle funding global health workforce, public health, and policy initiatives. Overlaps with CMB on health systems strengthening and training programs in Southeast Asia and other emerging markets.

Regional players

• Fogarty International Center (NIH): U.S. government center funding international health research training and fellowships in low- and middle-income countries. A non-foundation peer with directly overlapping postdoctoral and research-capacity-building programs.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about China Medical Board