Even old Paul Getty admitted that they were good stuff. Han Chudong liked them, so he kept buying them.

Because it was a charity auction, the asking price was often higher and the competition was not very fierce. Some people saw that Han Chudong liked them and gave up the idea of ​​buying them.

It is probably a small privilege after being promoted to a powerful person. Especially those who have never seen him before will often show goodwill and stop bidding after the price reaches a reasonable level.

The presence of such a scene at this charity auction, which is full of white people, is enough to show that the upper class, especially the celebrity tycoons in California, are accepting him, or trying to accept him.

It can be seen from the previous cocktail party that there are quite a few people who have taken the initiative to talk to Han Chudong. He has received more than 30 business cards, and the list of names in the address book is increasing rapidly. Among them are senior managers of large multinational companies, Wall Street tycoons, and very wealthy tycoons.

Some guys who are not strong enough also try to socialize, and may have begun to feel that knowing Han Chudong is a very face-saving thing.

As the richest and highest-ranking Asian in the United States since its founding, with his wealth reaching ten digits, racial barriers are no longer a problem that limits Han Chudong's ability to build his personal network.

As long as he keeps his thinking habits consistent with those of white people and doesn't do anything stupid enough to show the public how special he is, he will have become a special existence that has broken through the ceiling in North America.

He did not act recklessly just because he was richer. After buying several lots in succession, Han Chudong gave the opportunity to other people present. Unless he came across something that really caught his eye, he would just sit in the front row and chat with the Citibank executives next to him, trying to get another huge loan from Citibank.

Bank of America lent him more than 300 million U.S. dollars in succession. It was too conservative in lending, probably because it felt it could not make much money.

Having previously asked Arthur's assistant for development assessment data on the banking industry, he was well aware of how difficult times the banking industry was having. The Federal Reserve still restricted loan interest rates for businesses and individuals, rather than allowing them to float according to credit ratings as it would in the future. This was a regulation that provided room for the subsequent subprime mortgage crisis and made a bunch of bankers rave about their money.

If banks lend money out now, they may still suffer losses considering factors such as depreciation and default rate. Bank stocks have generally fallen a lot since the beginning of this year, and the overall market value is not very high.

Han Chudong frankly told the Citibank executives around him that the funds less than 200 million US dollars were of little significance to him, and tried to get another huge loan for investment and acquisition.

Two hundred million US dollars means the annual interest payment is more than twenty million US dollars. Considering the scale of revenue and net profit, it is no wonder that Bank of America began to restrict its lending to him. The last time he applied for two hundred million US dollars, only half of it was approved.

Of course, there is no actual risk of default.

Mason United Group's overall debt ratio is less than 20%, which is surprisingly healthy.

He mainly focused on the conversation. Occasionally, when he saw something good on the booth, he would try to raise his sign. If someone kept following him, Han Chudong would not take it after raising his sign two or three times.

I still live cautiously, pay more attention to what others think of me, and participate in the auction with a normal mind, with the idea of ​​not offending anyone if possible.

A loan intention worth 200 million US dollars was quickly reached during the auction. Han Chudong also asked if an additional loan could be provided to allow him to buy a private jet.

Upon learning that he was planning to spend nearly 20 million US dollars to purchase a Boeing 747 as a private jet, the faces of Citibank executives were extremely exciting...

Speaking of airplanes.

The next morning, people from Pan American Airways and Boeing came to Han Chudong's office together.

In the 1960s, Boeing invested approximately one billion U.S. dollars in a gamble that the Boeing 747 would be a success, and acquired a piece of land in Seattle to build a huge factory capable of producing the Boeing 747.

First, it lost the Pentagon contract, and now its sales are disappointing. In recent years, the annual sales of Boeing 747 wide-body aircraft have been less than 20, dragging down Boeing's market value, which is currently less than US$2.2 billion.

Pan Am was also in a bad situation.

Although the number of high-roller customers increased, they did not expect that the price of crude oil and loan interest rates would rise simultaneously. The signed purchase agreement for 25 Boeing 747s needed to be fulfilled, and for each aircraft Boeing produced, they would need to pay for an aircraft, which was more than 20 million US dollars per aircraft. At the current rate of delivering three to four aircraft per year, Pan Am is almost dragging down the company, and it is now on the brink of bankruptcy.

Han Chudong had done some research and currently he was probably the only one who knew that Boeing's 747 wide-body aircraft project would indeed be successful and would be a huge success in the future. However, he had never heard of Pan Am, and it was possible that it would go bankrupt in the next year.

After all, the government will definitely support Boeing to keep this arms dealer and civilian aircraft giant going, but it will not care about the life and death of an airline.

If you want to succeed in the United States, it is actually a safer approach to get involved in various pillar industries such as banking, insurance, securities, arms, oil, etc. They are closer to Washington and have more advantages. In order to ensure core competitiveness on the world stage, the government will help and provide strong support from behind.

From the perspective of the traditional business model, this is indeed the case, but Han Chudong feels that the IC and IT industries are not bad either, so he did not pay much attention to Boeing or the troubled Pan Am. He was only concerned about how much money it would cost to get a modified private jet.

There is no wrong version in the 1619 book forum!

Talk for a moment.

Pan American World Airways is now in urgent need of finding a buyer. It has no conditions and is willing to provide Han Chudong with certain support, such as post-maintenance, route arrangements, etc.

Excluding seats, vents, luggage racks, etc., the price given by Boeing is US$24.5 million, and the price of modified interior and cargo hold is calculated separately.

After a chat over coffee, Han Chudong asked the middle-level manager of Boeing's product department, "So what you mean is that you will sell me a semi-finished product for 24.5 million US dollars, and the subsequent design, modification, and painting will be calculated separately, right? How much does it cost?"

“It depends on the materials and construction difficulty. We may need to seek help from experts from other companies. To be honest, we don’t have much experience in designing private jet interiors. The total cost is at least US$3 million. If you need customized seats, it may reach US$5 million or even US$6 million. It all depends on your intention, just like decorating a house.

In addition, we also need to pay a fee. The transformation period will definitely be very long, which will delay our production, so..."

"etc."

Han Chudong interrupted without listening to the details, and said with a strange look: "I know your order volume is very small, so small that many production platforms are empty. I will not pay for this.

Tell your boss that if I buy a Boeing 747, it will be like advertising your 747 series. People will know how spacious and safe it is. More than a billion people may know that I bought it. Isn't it valuable? Not only will I not pay for the so-called delay in production, you should also give me a discount, including a discount for later maintenance. Tell your boss just like this. If he disagrees, I will reconsider purchasing a 747 as a private jet. In fact, the internal space of a Boeing 737 is enough..."