Chapter 488 Back-up preparation
Chapter 488 Back-up preparation
Yang Wendong naturally guessed Shen Bilai's purpose, so he smiled and said, "What other purpose could there be? I am optimistic about the future of Hong Kong, but some British people are not optimistic, so I bought the real estate or some company stocks that they didn't want. I also cooperated with HSBC in this regard, you should also know."
Shen Bi said: "That's true. Mr. Yang is indeed optimistic about the future development of Hong Kong. However, it is not a good idea to forcibly swallow up other people's companies or become a shareholder of other companies. If you are interested in other companies' properties, it might be better to directly propose to acquire them."
HSBC has participated in Changxing Real Estate's major acquisitions in Hong Kong in the past six months, from Central to Kowloon, involving over a hundred large properties and countless medium-sized properties. However, HSBC has not participated in any investment in the stock market. Obviously, Yang Wendong is wary of HSBC and British capital in this area.
Yang Wendong said, "That's not the way it should be. After acquiring the shares and reaching the legal requirement for the board seat, I should naturally obtain the rights that I deserve. Isn't this also the meaning of the financial market? It allows every capital that is optimistic about the future of the company to participate, and then together we can build a big company."
Shen Bi nodded and said, "Mr. Yang, let me be frank. The company you acquired and invested in this time is a British-owned enterprise. It's OK for Golden Gate Construction, but the Whampoa Group controls one of the three major docks in Hong Kong. This is the core industry of the British Hong Kong. Many people don't want the Chinese to control these assets."
"Really? The Hong Kong government has always been fair to Chinese and British capital. This is written in the law, right?" Yang Wendong asked in return, "Who are the people who are openly opposing the Hong Kong government and the law?"
"Mr. Yang, I know what you mean, but sometimes it's hard to say something directly. Let's be more direct." Shen Bi said, "We want to know what Mr. Yang will do next? Does he want to annex the entire Huangpu?"
Yang Wendong drank his coffee calmly before saying, "What would happen if I said I wanted to?"
Shen Bi said: “That will inevitably lead to a full-scale counterattack from the management and shareholders of the Huangpu Group, although the scale of the Huangpu Group is very small compared to Mr. Yang;
But the Whampoa Group has been operating in Hong Kong for a hundred years, and its network of contacts is very strong. It is not difficult to find people willing to support it. If a fight really breaks out, Mr. Yang may not be sure of his chances, and he may suffer heavy losses. "
It doesn't matter whether the tiger's butt is hurt or not, what matters is that it is touched. If Yang Wendong really launches a takeover war, even if it fails in the end, it will be a big blow to the reputation of Hong Kong British and British capital, and it will let everyone know that British capital is not so out of reach, which will also be a big temptation for the rapidly developing Chinese capital.
In particular, Yang Wendong has a great reputation in Hong Kong and even in the country. Even if he really does not give face to the Hong Kong government, it will be difficult for the Hong Kong government to target him, otherwise it is very likely to cause an international public opinion crisis.
So I still hope I can persuade him.
Yang Wendong said: "That's not necessarily true. Given the current situation in Hong Kong, I doubt how many British companies are willing to help the Whampoa Group, which has been losing money for many years? Or if HSBC wants to get involved, wouldn't that be illegal?"
The problem of Whampoa Group is not today, but a few years ago when it was competing with Swire Port and Wharf Port, it has been unable to compete. Although it has not suffered losses thanks to the rapid development of Hong Kong's export and trade demand, it is just a matter of not suffering losses. Anyone with a discerning eye can see that it is not doing well.
Moreover, the world is beginning to move towards container terminals, and the investment cost of such terminals is very high. Given the current situation of the Huangpu Group, it is hard to say whether it will have the opportunity to participate. Once missed, it will be an avalanche of decline. Coupled with this year's economic crisis, who would dare to invest heavily at this time?
That is to say, Yang Wendong, the time traveler, knew the future changes, the huge profits that the real estate market would bring to the old Huangpu Wharf, and his own needs for wharf technicians, so he dared to rush forward. Of course, he also wanted to use this worst wharf to test the intentions of British capital and the Hong Kong government.
Shen Bize said: "HSBC cannot participate, but Mr. Yang should understand the interests involved in this matter. The big British financial groups will not give up. I know that Mr. Yang's financial resources are not inferior to theirs, but it is not worthwhile to hurt both sides just for the sake of the Whampoa Group.
Moreover, your own shares are only 16%, which is not an advantage at all. As long as Huangpu finds a few helpers, it will be easy to dilute your shares. By then, I am afraid you will not even have a seat on the board of directors."
HSBC is a quasi-central bank. While enjoying this benefit, it is also restricted from directly participating in non-financial investments in Hong Kong, participating in real estate, purchasing stocks of other companies, etc., so HSBC cannot do such things.
But if they could find a few people who were willing to support Huangpu and provide loans, Yang Wendong, who currently holds a small stake, would definitely have no chance of winning. A targeted share increase by Huangpu Group would dilute everyone's shares.
"So what is your proposal?" Yang Wendong asked again.
Unlike Golden Gate Construction, the shares of Huangpu Group were too concentrated, which made it impossible for him to acquire enough shares in the early stage. If he really launched a takeover war with this amount of shares, he would be likely to lose.
Although they were not afraid of British capital, they would fight where they were sure to win, just like the acquisition of Kinmen, which was a way of defeating the enemy without fighting.
Shen Bi said: "Mr. Yang can retain his shares in Huangpu Group, become a major shareholder, and enjoy stock dividends; but he will give up his voting rights as a director and will not be allowed to purchase Huangpu shares in the future. As for Kinmen Group, you can stick to the agreement between you and Kinmen management."
"Shen Bi, even if you ask for too much, there must be a bottom line. If you ask too much, people will lose interest in the negotiation." Yang Wendong said calmly.
Shen Bize asked, "What does Mr. Yang want?"
"If you want me to give up increasing my investment in Huangpu, then you have to give me some compensation." Yang Wendong said, "Otherwise, why should I give up?"
Even if it was just a test, there was no reason to just close the bite and go home after biting off a piece of meat.
Shen Bi said pointedly, "Mr. Yang, once Huangpu Group decides to increase capital and expand shares, your 16% stake will inevitably be diluted. This is also the right granted to controlling shareholders by law. If this is done, you still do not have the rights of a director."
"That's right, we should all follow the law." Yang Wendong said with a faint smile, "Then I would like to ask you to tell me a message. For those who are willing to invest in Huangpu Group, it is best if their companies are not listed, or if they can definitely keep their controlling rights. Otherwise, don't save others, but get yourself into trouble, and there may not be anyone to save you anymore."
"Mr. Yang, are you targeting all British companies?" Shen Bi asked uncertainly. Yang Wendong smiled and said, "Just one of them, or maybe I'm just talking, it depends on whether you dare to play it or not?"
HSBC is definitely out of the question. As for the other companies, unless they are giants like Jardine Matheson, Swire and Wheelock, Yang Wendong really has no way to deal with them in a short period of time. But even if he cannot acquire them, he can still try his hand at some core industries.
By the end of 67, he had acquired a large amount of land and part of the stocks of some British companies. In addition, the electronic age was about to arrive and a more profitable opportunity was about to emerge. He would no longer take British capital seriously. He only needed to deal with them in a few years, and then he would need to go overseas to develop a red ocean market with international technology giants.
Shen Bi was silent for a while, and finally said: "Mr. Yang, you are right. If this is the case, we will not be able to get any good results. Maybe you don't care about British capital, but do you also not care about the attitude of the Hong Kong British government? Or is there another reason?"
"You can guess for yourself if there are other reasons." Yang Wendong paused and said, "But I will also give the Hong Kong government a favor. This matter ends here. I have obtained a seat on the board of directors of Huangpu Group and will not seek the next step.
But in the future, if I become a director of another company, you are not allowed to ask me. If you really don’t want to, then you can delist yourself. Don’t think about making money by listing without taking any risks. Also, if the company is well managed and has a high market value, I may not buy its shares. I don’t need to explain the reasoning behind this.”
This wave of testing was to test the attitude of the British Hong Kong towards key infrastructure through Huangpu, a declining infrastructure company. If it succeeded, other companies would do the same in the future.
"Okay, if that's the case, let's not talk about this anymore." Shen Bi added, "Please also ask Mr. Yang to control the media and not over-publicize this matter."
"Okay." Yang Wendong agreed.
We still have to give face to the British Hong Kong government. After all, they will still be in charge of Hong Kong for nearly 67 years after 30. Even if the overall situation has been settled after 85, they will still have the right to manage. If we are too disrespectful to them, even if we don't fall out completely, it will be awkward for us to stay in Hong Kong in the future.
Shen Bi said again: "Then I will take my leave first."
After Shen Bi left, Yang Wendong immediately called Fang Xianming and Zheng Zhijie and informed them of the outcome.
After listening to this, Fang Xianming said: “As we expected, the Hong Kong government can allow the Kinmen Group to be acquired, but they are unwilling to give up Huangpu’s port business;
Huangpu is nothing, but if we give up Huangpu today, we may target other large British companies in the future."
"Yes, but we have achieved our goal. We got a seat on the board of directors of the Whampoa Group. This is also the first time in Hong Kong's business history that a Chinese has forcibly become a director of a large British company." Yang Wendong said with a smile.
British companies in Hong Kong have long invited Chinese to serve as directors. This is one of the important means for British capital or the British Hong Kong government to win over local Chinese. However, these directors are basically mascots with no rights. Even if they do have any, they have to negotiate in advance to cooperate with British capital.
Fang Xianming agreed, "Yes, Huangpu has been successful this time. When we acquire other companies later, they will just get used to it."
Zheng Zhijie said: "Mr. Yang, then we will follow the plan and let Qi Dezun appear. This way, we can truly control the Huangpu Group."
"Let Qi Dezun come over, and we will talk to him about this matter in person." Yang Wendong agreed.
The reason for investing in Hutchison was not only because Qi Dezun was a very capable person and the stock market growth of the companies he managed would far exceed normal investments in the next few years, but also because it was a backup means for them to deal with British capital, which can now be used.
Fang Xianming agreed: "Okay, I'll arrange it."
A day later, at Changxing Building, Yang Wendong met Qi Dezun who came.
"Qi Dezun, I heard that you have made great achievements recently." Yang Wendong asked with a smile.
During this period, in addition to the Changxing Group, there were many other financial groups that were optimistic about the future of Hong Kong and participated in bargain hunting, but among the British companies, Qi Dezun was the only one with a scale;
It has to be said that Hutchison was able to almost surpass Jardine Matheson six years later. Although there were some bubble-blowing reasons, Qi Dezun's ability and vision were also very strong.
Qi Dezun smiled and said, "It's still far behind Mr. Yang. The incident between the Kinmen Group and the Whampoa Group shocked the whole of Hong Kong."
"What a pity, it still didn't succeed completely." Yang Wendong said again: "Qi Dezun, you also said before that you wanted to acquire Huangpu. I wonder how many shares you have acquired now?"
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(End of this chapter)