SIFT（Shanghai Institute of Foreign Trade） was founded in 1960

In 1994, the administration of the university was transferred to the Shanghai Municipal People's Government

In 2009, the university became one of the first WTO Chair institutions in the world and the first one in China

In 2013, the university was renamed Shanghai University of International Business and Economics

In 2019, the university was qualified as a WTO Asia-Pacific Training Center

In 2021, the university became a unit qualified to grant doctorates under the approval of the Academic Degrees Committee of the State Council

In 2022, the university was listed in the program of promoting key top-tier universities in Shanghai