Chapter 437 Li Zairong's "Excellent" Performance
Zheng Mengxian was quite conflicted at the moment. Although as long as he agreed, he would be able to get a large amount of funds to rescue the credit card company soon, if he really did so, an extremely embarrassing scene would occur.
That is, as the helmsman of the group, he will have very few company shares in his hands, because he has mortgaged them in exchange for funds! The most terrible thing is that according to the current situation, the shares mortgaged to Lehman Brothers are likely to be confiscated by the other party because the loan cannot be repaid.
If the company shares he mortgaged to KB Bank also encountered a similar situation, then he, the chairman of Hyundai Group, would most likely become a "shell commander"! Once such news was leaked, I'm afraid the entire Hyundai Group would fall apart!
But if they don't agree, then perhaps within a month, their Hyundai Group will suffer serious backlash due to the massive bad debts of the credit card companies, which will also lead to serious negative consequences, which is not what he wants to see.
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"Since Chairman Zheng Mengxian still has concerns, why don't you go back and think about signing the loan agreement? When you have figured it out, come back to Comet Capital?" Seeing that Zheng Mengxian was slow to answer, Zhang Junfeng guessed something and did not rush him. Instead, he kindly reminded him to go back and think carefully about whether he wanted a mortgage loan.
Zheng Mengxian looked at Zhang Junfeng with a complicated expression, and finally, after hesitating for a few minutes, he gritted his teeth and nodded in agreement. After all, at this point, it was difficult for them to find other ways to solve such a problem. If he went around in circles for more than ten days and finally turned to Comet Capital for help, he would be really embarrassed!
…
Seeing Zheng Mengxian leaving with a few subordinates in a hurry with an ugly face after signing the contract, Wu Xiuying asked, "Boss, this Zheng Mengxian is so weird! He was so anxious at the beginning of the negotiation, as if they would collapse if we refused to provide them with a loan. But when we agreed to the loan but only required the other party to provide an equivalent company stock mortgage, he became quite hesitant. Isn't this a strong contrast too weird?"
"...It seems that our Special Assistant Wu is very observant~! Have you guessed why he has such a change?" Zhang Junfeng smiled and pulled the other party into his arms. He sniffed the fragrance of the beauty in his arms and asked jokingly.
Wu Xiuying rolled her eyes in annoyance after being caught off guard, and then replied uncertainly, "Maybe there is something wrong with the company shares he holds? Other than that, there is no other reason why he would care so much about the request to mortgage the company shares."
"That's right! There was a problem with the company shares he held, so he got so nervous when it came to mortgaging the company shares!"
Zhang Junfeng said with a bright smile, "If my guess is correct, this guy must have reached a mortgage agreement with some institutions when dealing with the crisis of Hyundai Group a few years ago. That's why he was able to come up with so much money in a short period of time, and even used a large amount of funds to repurchase the shares of the group's subsidiaries, preventing Zheng Mengjiu from taking away more subsidiaries."
"But this is not necessarily a bad thing for us! Whether it is the credit card company of LG Group or Hyundai Group, if they want to solve the large-scale bad debt problem at the root, without the new policy of the Blue House, no matter how much money they spend to fill this 'hole', it will only delay the time for the credit card company to completely explode, and there will not be much change!"
Hearing Zhang Junfeng say this, Wu Xiuying's eyes suddenly lit up, "So, Boss, you are so generous and willing to provide a loan, more because you got the company shares they used as collateral for the loan?!"
"That's right! The opportunity to acquire the management rights of LG Healthcare and the remaining subsidiaries of Hyundai Group under LG Group is definitely two great things for us!"
"And once successful, our Comet Capital's position in Goryeo will be further enhanced, and our influence will completely surpass that of many chaebols and large companies. No matter who moves into the Blue House in the future, we will be invincible~!"
If we say that after the Asian financial crisis, the IMF took advantage of the situation and obtained the core company shares of these large enterprises in Korea in disguise by providing loans, turning them into profit tools in their hands, bringing them endless profits; then Comet Capital took advantage of the special opportunity when the credit card crisis was about to break out to tie a chain to these chaebols and large enterprises, making them the loyal lackeys of their own camp~!
…
In the meeting room of the Five Star Group, including Chairman Li Jianxi, everyone was worried. The increasing bad debts of credit card companies had seriously exceeded their expectations. If they continued to develop like this, it would not be long before the bad debts of credit card companies would be beyond their control~!
"...So, what solutions can you come up with now?!" Li Jianxi looked at everyone present with a serious look, expecting someone to come up with a practical solution.
However, what he didn't expect was that all the executives present were embarrassed, and no one took the initiative to propose a practical solution. This scene made Li Jianxi a little disappointed. As the chairman of the group, what he needed was not some subordinates who obeyed his orders, but a think tank team that could help him make plans at critical moments. Only in this way could their Five Star Group survive crises and continue to grow and expand.
Perhaps because the others were silent and his father was embarrassed, Li Jae-yong took the initiative to speak out his own opinion, "Based on the current situation, the bad debts of credit card companies are increasing. A large part of the reason is that the company's staff set a too low threshold for review when applying for credit cards, and did not take into account many factors such as the applicants' job positions, salaries, and repayment ability."
"In addition, the terrible policies introduced by the Blue House some time ago have completely ignited the credit card business, which already had some problems~!"
At this point, Li Zairong paused and found that everyone present nodded thoughtfully. No one objected to his opinion. He continued, "What we can do now is to strictly control the credit card application business and do a good job of checking at the source. Secondly, we urge those users whose loans are overdue to repay their debts as much as possible. However, if we want to push this matter forward thoroughly, we may need the cooperation of the Blue House..."
When Li Zairong mentioned that he needed the cooperation of the Blue House, everyone's faces changed. Even Li Jianxi was a little surprised. Li Zairong's proposal was indeed very targeted. However, it would be difficult to implement it thoroughly and control the poor situation of the credit card company.
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Li Jianxi did not give a direct comment on Li Zairong's proposal, but instead asked others leisurely, "What do you think of Li Zairong's proposal just now?"
"Vice President Lee Jae-yong's proposal is certainly good, but it will be difficult to convince the people at the Blue House, or even Mr. Dae Jong..." A middle-aged man wearing glasses frowned and expressed his opinion.
When the others heard this analysis, they nodded in agreement. Although their Five Star Group has become the largest enterprise in Goryeo, trying to persuade Mr. Da Zhong to revise the relevant regulations on credit cards previously promulgated is tantamount to pointing at others and scolding them for having issued a wrong system!
Once they do something that would slap Mr. Da Zhong in the face, let’s not talk about whether Mr. Da Zhong would agree to make the changes. The fact that they have offended the president who is still in office will make the Five Star Group face a difficult time in the days ahead~!
When he heard the other party mention Mr. Da Zhong, Li Jianxi's expression became more serious. His methods were quite powerful. He was able to pull Goryeo, which had fallen into the abyss of bankruptcy, back on track and towards the ranks of developed countries in just a few years. His ability was evident. If their Five Star Group became the first to violate the policies issued by the Blue House, Mr. Da Zhong might use their Five Star Group as an example!
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Seeing his father Li Jianxi's silence, Li Zairong was startled, and then added, "Director Park's concerns should indeed be taken into consideration. However, the credit card company problems are not only our Five Star Group, but also large companies such as Hyundai Group and LG Group. Should they be involved? If we can unite them to petition the Blue House, I think Mr. Dae Jong will also realize that there is indeed a problem with the policy issued before."
"Even if Mr. Da Zhong still has a grudge, he will not target our Five Star Group alone. After all, 'the law does not punish everyone.' Moreover, if so many credit card companies in the country really have problems, it will inevitably hit the domestic economy that has finally recovered."
"Mr. Da Zhong ascended to the presidency by relying on the slogan of restoring the economy. He will never watch the economy that he spent so much time and energy to boost collapse again~!"
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Li Jae-yong's words made everyone in the conference room brighten up! This approach and rhetoric, if you think about it carefully, is very feasible! If other credit card companies can stay on the "same front" with them, the probability of persuading Mr. Dae-jong will definitely increase greatly, and it will not be easy to cause the other party's disgust and plan.
There is no mistake in the poem, post, content, and read the book on 6, 9, and bar!
Seeing that the solution was in sight, Li Jianxi was in a good mood and returned to his office with Li Zairong, chatting and laughing.
"Haha, you did a great job today. You convinced those guys~!" Li Jianxi, who was leaning on the sofa, was quite satisfied with his son Li Zairong's performance. The successor in his mind should be so confident and resourceful!
Hearing his father's praise, Li Zairong was in a good mood. However, he did not reveal the secret of his "extraordinary performance" today. He had discussed it privately with his brother-in-law Zhang Junfeng two days ago!
It turns out that Comet Capital had previously conducted a detailed investigation of the current situation of domestic credit card companies, and a professional team provided analysis and feasible suggestions. The reason why he mentioned this matter to Li Zairong was probably because of the friendly relationship between the two parties and he also hoped to remind his father-in-law Li Jianxi.
Li Zairong also asked Zhang Junfeng, and he also received some news that many companies visited Comet Capital, hoping that Comet Capital could provide loans to help their credit card companies overcome the current difficulties. In this case, can their Five Star Group also ask for help from Comet Capital like other companies when there is no other solution?
Zhang Junfeng smiled and said yes, but his next words made Li Zairong completely give up this idea!
"According to the current situation, if the root cause of the increasing bad debts of credit card companies is not resolved, then borrowing more money will only be a drop in the bucket. The loans provided to these companies will most likely not be recovered. Fortunately, Comet Capital will take over all the company shares they pledged. If you don't mind if the Five Star Group's assets that you will take over shrink again in the future, just suggest to my father-in-law that we can ask Comet Capital for help. We will respond to any request~!"
After hearing what Zhang Junfeng said, Li Zairong shut up and stopped talking about this topic. He hoped to get help from Zhang Junfeng, but he didn't think about giving up part of the Five Star Group's industry! Anyway, there are ways to deal with and solve the problem, so why must he ask Zhang Junfeng, the "greedy" brother-in-law, for help? !
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In the following period, the credit card companies under the enterprises that received the loan turnover from KB Bank barely managed to hold on. However, the situation did not improve, but became more and more serious. By August, the number of people with bad credit (unable to repay loans) in Goryeo exceeded 1.9 million, accounting for nearly 10% of the economically active population in Goryeo, and the bad debt rate exceeded 20%. According to incomplete statistics, the bad debt rate of LG credit cards is likely to have exceeded 30%! Under this situation, under the leadership of Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, the Five Star Group visited many companies in a very short period of time to discuss and jointly submit applications to the Blue House, hoping to improve the supervision and management of credit card companies. It can no longer be left alone!
Many companies saw Lee Jae-yong, a big shot of the Five Star Group, personally leading the lobbying, and considering the current dire situation, they immediately gritted their teeth and agreed. Finally, in late August, many domestic companies jointly visited the Blue House to meet with Mr. Dae Jong to tell them about their current dire situation, hoping that the Blue House could "lend a hand"! Mr. Dae Jong pondered for a long time about such unexpected bad news. As a superior, changing his orders every day is undoubtedly a huge loss to his prestige. But if he does not agree to the joint demands of so many companies, the huge impact caused by the collective collapse of credit card companies will definitely be much more serious than the loss of prestige~!
"When weighing two benefits, choose the greater one; when weighing two harms, choose the lesser one." Mr. Da Zhong quickly made a decision and chose to help these companies solve their current problems. Stabilizing the domestic economy is the top priority.
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More than half an hour later, the recorders in the conference room took special notes based on the discussions of these bigwigs, and according to Mr. Da Zhong's request, they will formulate special credit card company supervision regulations within a week.
(End of this chapter)