Hutchison Whampoa, inside the chairman’s office.
Listening to the news reported by his subordinates, Li Ka Shing seemed quite calm, as if all this was within his expectations.
"Father, should we cooperate with Zhang Junfeng and help gather those uncles and aunts?" Li Zeju on the side also tried to ask.
"That's right. Not only should we take the initiative to do this, but we should also do it beautifully! Let both sides be grateful to us. Only in this way can we pocket as many benefits as possible~!" Li Ka Shing nodded and expressed his opinion.
Since Zhang Junfeng was planning to use the name of the Li family to recruit real estate companies in Hong Kong, they would use this opportunity to help both sides. Once the matter was accomplished, the Li family would naturally benefit, and those old foxes would also be "grateful" to them. It was a two-birds-with-one-stone strategy, so why not do it? !
“…This matter is of great importance. Zeju, please don’t let me down!” Li Ka Shing gave a meaningful reminder at the end.
In the land of Longguo, if you want to expand your business here, personal connections and social skills are an inevitable part. If his son wants to take over smoothly, in addition to being familiar with and able to manage the company's industries, he must also maintain good relationships with those "uncles".
Even though these "uncles" suffered heavy losses during the financial crisis, which one of them was easy to deal with? Their connections and networks in Hong Kong were deeply rooted, and making friends with them would definitely be beneficial to a young man like Li Zeju.
Li Zeju's heart trembled, as if he understood the deeper meaning of his father's words, and then he nodded solemnly and agreed.
…
The heads of the real estate companies in Hong Kong who received the invitation and the inside information almost accepted the invitation without hesitation, planning to meet with the representatives of these financial investment institutions to see what the other party was up to. In less than two days, Zhang Junfeng, who received the exact negotiation meeting notice from Hutchison Whampoa, was also somewhat amazed at the other party's efficiency, "I underestimated the ability of Chairman Li~!"
"So what should we do next? What should we do if the heads of Hong Kong's real estate companies refuse to make concessions?" other members of the delegation asked curiously.
Things have come to this point, and success is only a few steps away. But the next few steps will be crucial, and will determine whether their purpose of this trip to Hong Kong can be achieved.
Zhang Junfeng was quite confident. "If they refuse to give in, then we will just keep wasting time with them. If it drags on for too long, the first ones to collapse will be them and the Hong Kong government, which will lose face!"
Hearing Zhang Junfeng say this, several people smiled knowingly. If this is the case, then what do they have to worry about? In this game, the "advantage is mine" is a definite advantage!
…
Perhaps because of the reputation of these financial institutions, or perhaps because they had already received official news from Hong Kong, the subsequent multi-party negotiation meetings went very smoothly.
At the meeting, various parties formed a shopping cooperation plan. Three foreign financial institutions headed by Zhang Junfeng will continue to purchase real estate projects worth 100 billion Hong Kong dollars within two years.
Many real estate companies including Hutchison Whampoa, Cheung Kong Holdings, Sun Hung Kai Properties, Henderson Land Development and New World Development had no choice but to arrange for news media reports when signing transaction contracts to continuously inform the public that foreign financial institutions were optimistic about the Xiangjiang real estate market and were investing in it, so as to increase the price of Hong Kong real estate as much as possible.
Of course, in order to ensure that these real estate companies would not turn their backs on each other, Zhang Junfeng also proposed to sign a cooperation agreement on the spot. Once any real estate company unilaterally withdraws or refuses to implement the cooperation agreement, it will be targeted by all the companies present and regarded as an enemy.
This shocked the heads of real estate companies present. They had never thought that Zhang Junfeng, a young man, could be so thoughtful. Some of them even imagined that they would wait for good news and policies in the real estate industry, then regret and refuse to sell the cheap real estate to these financial institutions and keep all the benefits.
I never expected that the other party had already taken all these things into consideration~!
As for this situation, Li Ka Shing, as the middleman who convened the meeting, saw that these "uncles" were still hesitant. After thinking for a moment, he took the initiative to express his opinion and agreed to this proposal. Others and the installation also agreed.
After the meeting ended and Zhang Junfeng and others left, these real estate tycoons stayed in the meeting room and looked at Li Ka Shing, wanting to hear what this guy was planning.
Facing the questions from these old friends, Li Ka Shing was very calm and composed. He said, "It is of no benefit to us to stop the other party's proposal. To be honest, the losses of Hutchison Whampoa in real estate should not be as serious as yours, so we can hold on. But if these financial institutions did not take over and speculate, how many days could your real estate companies hold on?"
Hearing what Li Ka-shing said, the uncles who wanted to take advantage of the situation were speechless for a moment. Isn't that the case? They are the passive and anxious party. Once they reject the other party's kindness, they want to wait until the real estate industry in Hong Kong really picks up, which may take a few months or even several years. In that case, their losses will be even more serious.
Under such circumstances, cooperating with these financial institutions is the best solution at the moment. The leaders of several real estate companies looked at each other. They found that they had the same idea as themselves and could not come up with any other feasible solutions. They could only smile at Li Jiacheng and tacitly agree to the results of this meeting.
…
Half a month after the successful multi-party negotiations, Sun Mingyang, director of the Hong Kong government's Housing Authority, announced a series of policies to restrict land and housing supply at a press conference. This move was widely interpreted by the news media as a symbol of the government's intention to boost the real estate industry, which had been weak for many years.
Less than a week after the press conference, three foreign financial institutions, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Investment Bank and Comet Capital, announced the establishment of real estate investment companies in Hong Kong.
In an interview with the media, the company's general manager Hong Qiming generously stated that they are very optimistic about the future real estate market in Hong Kong, and said that the company has a corresponding investment plan and will take action in the near future.
This series of "combination punches" has gradually made Hong Kong people and investment institutions realize that the real estate industry, which has been dormant for many years, will usher in a period of growth in the next few years. And those people and investors who bought at the high prices in 1996-1997 and were trapped in the market are excited and shed tears, because they finally "have their cake and eat it too"!
——————Dividing line——————
As time went by, it was soon late May 2001. With the increasing frequency of large-scale transactions in Hong Kong real estate in recent months, real estate transaction prices have risen significantly compared to before.
Matto Walsh, the vice president of Goldman Sachs Group in the United States, listened to the report from his subordinates with a smug smile on his face. "It seems that when the next extraordinary shareholders' meeting is held, those group shareholders who are waiting and watching will have no choice but to 'accept the bet and lose' and vote for me!"
"Other people's investment situations can't even be compared with ours~!"
"Yes, Boss! Congratulations in advance on becoming the new president of our group!" The subordinate was very tactful and started to flatter him.
…
Just as the two were immersed in the joy of a successful investment, Mato Wals's private phone suddenly rang. Looking at the familiar incoming number on the phone screen, Mato Wals smiled brightly, "Haha, it seems that our 'Hermes' may have a new investment project~!"
(Note: In ancient Greek mythology, the god in charge of money is Hermes. He is not only the patron saint of business, trade, travel and theft, but is also considered a symbol of wealth and business.) Upon hearing Matto Walls describe Zhang Junfeng, the gold medal investment consultant, in this way, the subordinates smiled knowingly, and then tactfully left the office, leaving the private space to their boss.
…
"According to the current situation, are you confident that you can get more than half of the support and votes at the next extraordinary shareholders' meeting and be elected as the new group president?" After the call was connected, Zhang Junfeng did not beat around the bush and went straight to the point to ask the question that concerned him most.
"We should be about 70% to 80% sure, right? According to the current situation, the returns from the investment projects led by those competitors are not as high as ours..." Mato Walls said seriously.
"...Then you want to improve your confidence further, to 90% or even... 100%? " Zhang Junfeng paused for a few seconds and asked a very tempting question.
There is no mistake in the poem, post, content, and read the book on 6, 9, and bar!
"Of course I did! Do you have any new investment plans?" Mato Walls sighed in his heart. This was just as he expected. Zhang Junfeng, the investment genius, had come up with a new investment plan!
"Of course I have a plan, but you also know the rules of the investment world. 'The risk and return of an investment are directly proportional.' If you want a high enough return, then the risk you need to take is also huge!"
"I have reviewed the financial statements of many companies listed in the United States recently. It seems that the aftereffects of last year's global Internet crisis have not subsided, and the performance of most companies is sluggish."
"Those financial institutions have become much more cautious about investment. It is likely that they were cheated too badly by Internet high-tech companies before, and the losses were so severe that they dare not invest as much as before~!"
"...I plan to join forces with several institutions to borrow stocks of listed companies including airlines and travel companies in July and August and short them. I will also continue to place orders in the futures market to short the futures contracts of the Nasdaq and Dow Jones indices, and then cash out and leave in October~!"
"Hiss! Zhang Junfeng, are you sure you are not kidding?" Mato Walsh was shocked by Zhang Junfeng's proposal.
Although shorting listed companies and stock market indices can indeed bring huge profits, the corresponding risks are also extremely huge. Once unexpected situations occur in the market, the money they invested is likely to suffer huge losses, or even lose all their money.
Realizing that Mato Walls was worried, Zhang Junfeng was silent for a moment before he slowly spoke, "I'm sure you're aware of the recent situation. Without high-return investment projects like Internet technology companies, it's very difficult to get huge returns through investment in a short period of time."
"...Some time ago, I consulted a Feng Shui master in Hong Kong to help me calculate. He said that my fortune in the second half of the year will be very strong and I will achieve great success in my career. So do you want to... take a gamble with me?"
Hearing Zhang Junfeng's words, Mato Walsh showed a struggling look on his face. He knew that since Zhang Junfeng proposed such an investment plan, he must have made some prior preparations and understandings.
But as Zhang Junfeng said before, risk is proportional to investment return. Especially at this critical moment, if there is any mistake on his side, the CEO throne that he has been thinking about for a long time may fall into the hands of others.
When he thought of this, Matto Walls took a deep breath and said with a wry smile, "I'm afraid I'll disappoint you. Goldman Sachs may not be able to participate in this investment plan. After all, the appointment of the president cannot be wrong at all for me... But I can participate in it in my personal name and invest 100 million US dollars."
"Of course, if you need to raise funds for your operations, I can help you make a call and secure a low-interest loan of 1 billion US dollars for you..."
…
Zhang Junfeng was not surprised to hear the other party say this. After all, his action this time was indeed risky, and it was indeed a "dilemma" for Mato Wals, who was competing for the position of group president.
If everything went well, it would be fine, but if something went wrong, his position as CEO might be taken away by someone else. Such a result would be difficult for him to accept.
After hanging up the phone, Zhang Junfeng sighed helplessly. He had originally planned to use the channels and reputation of Goldman Sachs Group to help borrow stocks of companies that were preparing to short sell, but now it seems that he can only find other partners.
Fortunately, Nacho Morgan quickly agreed to Zhang Junfeng's new short-selling plan after learning about it. However, this time they needed to short a lot of stocks, and if all of them were handled by JPMorgan Chase's subordinate institutions, it would inevitably attract the attention of some people.
Nacho Morgan suggested that Morgan Securities use the channels of other peers to complete the borrowing of stocks of airlines and insurance companies, while they themselves would try to get the stocks of the largest travel company in America. This way, it would appear much more normal and it would be less likely for people to notice any abnormalities.
As for the steps of shorting the Nasdaq and Dow Jones indices, it is much easier. Because they have plenty of time, they can mobilize dozens of accounts step by step, split the short-selling index contracts they need to buy into dozens of different sizes, and complete the operation within a month.
Zhang Junfeng was also quite satisfied with Nacho Morgan's detailed plan. Before this, he was a little worried that if this guy rejected his proposal like Mato Walls, it would take a lot of effort to implement the short selling plan~! (End of this chapter)