"Mr. Shen Bi, my tea art level is not very high, please forgive me." On the balcony outside the presidential suite of the Hilton Hotel, Chen Zhiwen and Shen Bi sat across from each other. In the middle was a custom-made tea table where you can make your own tea. Chen Zhiwen took matters into his own hands, brewed two cups of tea, handed one to Shen Bi, and said with a smile.
"I didn't expect Chen Sheng to have such a skill." After taking the tea, Shen Bi took a sip and said, "It tastes very good."
"It's just for fun, please feel free to do so." Chen Zhiwen said. In fact, making tea is very simple, just a few operations. This kind of tea seat is only for those who like to drink tea and don't want to be disturbed by people often. Yes, anyone can come. The main factor is the quality of the tea. His tea is naturally top-notch. Even if the time may be a little off, it does not affect the quality. Besides, Shen Bi and he are both lay people, so the taste is about the same. .
"In Hong Kong, I have seen many people who can make their business big, but Chen Sheng is the first one who can make it so big and so leisurely." Shen Bi said with a smile.
"It can only be said that I don't have the ability to manage, so I can only let professional managers manage it." Chen Zhiwen said with a shrug.
"For an enterprise, it is more important to have a leader with strategic vision. Chen Sheng is obviously such a person." Shen Bi smiled and said, "I still remember when you wanted to acquire this hotel, Chen Sheng. Not only me, many real estate developers in Hong Kong also find it unreasonable, but now it seems that Chen Sheng is right. With the current land price, even if Chen Sheng and Hilton Hotel break the contract, I will give them a sum of money to get back this land. The management rights of each building are also much more cost-effective.”
"What's the point of a hotel? Although hotels in Hong Kong are profitable, the efficiency is not high. If I take back the management rights of this hotel, the first thing I will do is to demolish the hotel and build the tallest hotel in Hong Kong. Building, what do you think Mr. Shen Bi?" Chen Zhiwen said with a smile.
"It is indeed more cost-effective, but the investment is a bit larger, but for Chen Sheng, it is nothing." Shen Bi nodded and asked: "Chen Sheng invited me here, isn't it just for this matter? You Want to build a super building in Central?”
"The building matter is not urgent. Let's talk about Hong Kong Electric. In fact, Mr. Shen Bi must also know my purpose." Chen Zhiwen said with a shrug.
"Okay, then what conditions must Chen Sheng put forward before he is willing to give up the acquisition of Hong Kong Electric?" Shen Bi said with a smile.
"Mr. Shen Bi is so confident that you will definitely win? Is it because the current market value of Hong Kong Electric has exceeded HK$5 billion? Or is it because the 35% acquisition offer triggers the rule?" Chen Zhiwen asked with a smile while pouring tea.
"Then Chen Sheng thinks he will definitely win, right? With the current market value of Hong Kong Electric, if you trigger the acquisition offer, you will spend at least another 4 billion Hong Kong dollars. I don't know if you have such a large amount of funds, but such a large amount of funds , with Mr. Chen’s operating capabilities in recent years, wouldn’t it be more cost-effective to invest elsewhere? And if a takeover bid is not triggered, even if you get 34.9% of the shares, it will be difficult to overthrow the current HK Electric board of directors, which is supported by Jardine Matheson and HSBC. , maybe we can't help you either, but the internal friction is also a loss for you, Chen Sheng. How about we negotiate a condition now and slowly sell your shares to Jardine? I guarantee you won't lose." Shen Bi said with a smile.
The Hong Kong government's revised acquisition triggering offer was actually newly formulated by Shen Bi, a group of British investors and the Hong Kong government. In addition to the 35% trigger, there are other conditions. For example, after the acquisition offer is triggered, it must be within two months. Purchasing the stocks in the hands of all shareholders at the highest purchase price of the stock in the previous half-year period will definitely require far more funds than the actual value of the acquired company, because previous acquisitions will definitely cause the company's stock price to skyrocket. As long as the company initiating the acquisition has a sound mind, it is impossible to trigger a takeover offer.
Once the acquisition offer is triggered, if it does not acquire, it will be equivalent to giving up the acquisition. According to the new law, the acquirer needs to slowly sell its shares until it is less than 16%, which is the cut-off point for becoming a director, and It will not be allowed to acquire the company again in the next seven years.
Everything is done to protect British companies.
"It is indeed more difficult, but I think the biggest problem is HSBC. If HSBC can't help Jardine Matheson or HK Electric, then no matter how strict the laws are, it will be useless." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile. The laws are stricter than the one customized by Pao Yugang after he acquired Wharf in history. The reason is naturally that the current Chen Zhiwen is far superior to the former Pao Yugang in terms of strength. No matter how the Hong Kong government labels it, It is impossible to treat Chinese and British capital "fairly" and just sit idly by. We can only impose such stringent requirements to limit hostile takeovers in Hong Kong.
"What do you mean?" Shen Bi frowned and said, with an ominous premonition in his heart.
"Actually, I asked Mr. Shen Bi to come here today to show you this." Chen Zhiwen smiled, then took out a stack of documents from the document bag and handed it to Shen Bi.
Shen Bi took it curiously, opened it and took a look. His expression immediately changed, but he quickly returned to normal and asked calmly: "There are only a handful of people in HSBC who know about this matter, not even the board of directors. Are you?" How do you know this?"
"No one knows about it here in Hong Kong, but there are a lot of people in the United States who know about it." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile: "A friend of mine was born in a banking family, and later made a little fortune in other fields, so he planned to acquire A commercial bank happened to choose the sixth largest bank in New York State. After contacting it, I found out that HSBC was also planning to acquire SITC. The world is really small, and the probability of finding a needle in a haystack was also encountered by us. It was fate. !”
"Your friend has acquired SITC Bank?" Shen Bi said with an ugly face. He naturally did not believe that such a coincidence could happen. Chen Zhiwen must have planned it in advance, but HSBC's acquisition of SITC Bank was a top-secret matter. There are only a handful of people involved in this matter, including SITC Bank, and some people in the Federal Reserve also know about it.
These people know it, but they will not tell Chen Zhiwen on their own initiative, because it is impossible to know each other. The only explanation is that Chen Zhiwen learned about HSBC's plan from Hong Kong, and then arranged for his American friends to acquire it. As an American , and may have a certain background. Basically, it is not a problem to acquire a local bank as long as the money is available, which is much less difficult than the acquisition by HSBC.
"It's not a complete acquisition, just 51%. But my friend is just investing and playing around. If someone else wants to buy it in the future, he will still be willing to sell it if the price is right." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile.
"What price does this friend Chen Sheng come up with?" Shen Bi naturally understood what Chen Zhiwen meant. If the negotiation goes well, HSBC still has a chance to get SITC Bank again. If the negotiation fails, it will be over. .
"The higher the price, the better. Mr. Shen Bi, you are the buyer. Naturally, you are the first to make the offer. However, the acquisition of the bank requires the approval of the Federal Reserve, even if it is an American, and he has already negotiated with the Federal Reserve and SITC Bank. The board of directors signed the agreement and there will be no transaction within two years, so it is better to wait for Mr. Shen Bi to make an offer after two years." Chen Zhiwen said with a shrug.
"Two years? That's too long." Shen Bi said: "HSBC can withdraw from the acquisition of Hong Kong Electric and will not provide any more loans to Jardine, but we need to negotiate again for the acquisition of SITC."
"This is a regulation of the Federal Reserve. If you can convince the Federal Reserve, my friend should have no objection." Chen Zhiwen said helplessly.
This is not to deceive Shen Bi. The acquisition of a bank is a major event in itself, involving the funds of millions of depositors in a region and the financial stability of a region. Henry Morgan's career has also become very big because of the skyrocketing value of his worth in recent years. In addition, the Morgan family's The Federal Reserve agreed to acquire the company due to its identity, but it was not without conditions. If you want to sell it again, you have to wait two years, otherwise you will face huge penalties.
"Chen Sheng is really awesome. I, Shen Bi, really admire me. Take one step at a time and see ten steps at a time. When you prepare to acquire Hong Kong Electric, are you prepared to guard against me, HSBC?" Shen Bi sighed.
"It's just a last resort. I don't want to go against the central bank of Hong Kong. This is just my self-defense." Chen Zhiwen said lightly.
In terms of funds, he is actually not afraid of HSBC. However, the current laws in Hong Kong are biased towards British capital. In addition, HSBC will not come forward in person and will only lead others to go against him. No matter how much money is burned, HSBC will not only If there is no loss, he will lend out more funds and make some profits. Besides, the funds in his hands will be of great use in many fields in the future, so it is impossible to invest too much in Hong Kong.
"Then what are Chen Sheng's conditions? Just say it directly?" Shen Bi thought for a moment and said softly.
It is difficult to find a bank that is suitable for HSBC to develop a national platform. It cannot be too small. If it is too small, it will not have the ability to internationalize. If it is too big, HSBC will not have the ability to acquire it. In addition, every country has its own bank. There are many protection mechanisms. It may be easy to buy shares, but it can be said to be extremely difficult to acquire and obtain management rights.
In the case of SITC Bank, its performance has been very poor in recent years. In addition, large banks in the United States cannot protect themselves due to the economic crisis. Otherwise, it would not be the turn of a small local HSBC to acquire it. Moreover, HSBC has invested too much in the past few years. If you give up your energy and resources now, you may not be able to find a suitable second home in the next five years.
Besides, even if you give up SITC Bank and go against Chen Zhiwen, if the other party loses the acquisition of HK Electric, will you encounter the same thing in the future when you look for another company? Once again, Shen Bi is about to retire, which is absolutely unacceptable, and waiting for two years is not a big problem. It is said to be two years, but when it comes to bank acquisitions, it usually only takes one or two years.
"Mr. Shen Bi also said that HSBC would withdraw from the acquisition of Hong Kong Electric and would not be allowed to fund Jardine Matheson and Land. In addition, I know that HSBC had previously promised to provide Hong Kong Electric with a low-interest loan of HK$1 billion to develop its own land. "If I join HK Electric, I hope HSBC can fulfill this promise. As for mortgage or loan repayment requirements, it will not be a problem. We will just follow Hong Kong's rules." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile.
"Okay, no problem." Veins twitched on Shen Bi's face. Originally, it was just to raise the share price of HK Electric to limit Chen Zhiwen's continued acquisitions. Even if he really blocked Chen Zhiwen, he might not do it when HK Electric is still British-owned. Fulfill this promise, but now you can only follow the other party.
"Also, I respect HSBC very much. After all, it is the central bank of Hong Kong. However, central banks in various countries basically do not interfere in commercial matters. Therefore, I think it is better for HSBC not to interfere in such matters in the future." Chen Zhiwen added .
Shen Bi frowned and said, "Sheng Chen's request is too much, and I may not have the final say on HSBC in the future."
"It won't take long, just these two years." Chen Zhiwen said.
It is naturally impossible to use this to restrict HSBC for a lifetime. It will take too long for the other party to agree. If Shen Bi decides to find another bank, then his own plan of arranging Henry Morgan to acquire SITC Bank will be useless.
"Okay, then two years. After two years, I hope Chen Sheng can abide by today's promise and sell SITC Bank to me, HSBC." After thinking for a moment, Shen Bi nodded and agreed. This kind of thing cannot be signed with a contract. It’s not that the contract cannot restrict these transactions, but if it is actually signed, once the outside world knows about it, HSBC will become the laughing stock of Hong Kong and even the world, and he, Shen Bi, may also become The most "famous" Taipan in the history of HSBC.
In business, there is no need to be afraid of admitting defeat. If you lose, you lose. Just let it go. Maybe the enemies a few months ago will cooperate a few months later. If no such evidence is left, who will still remember this a few years later? thing.
"Then I wish us a happy cooperation, Mr. Shen Bi." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile. This was a fake cooperation, and he wouldn't reach out to shake hands. It would really be a slap in Shen Bi's face, which is unnecessary.
"I'm really happy today, Chen Sheng. If there's nothing else, I'll leave first." Shen Bi said, suppressing the unwillingness in his heart.
"Okay, I'll see Mr. Shen Bi off." Chen Zhiwen was very considerate and sent Shen Bi off personally.
Shen Bi didn't think too much. He had too many things on his mind at the moment. The two of them had just arrived in the lobby on the first floor and suddenly saw a few reporters. Shen Bi immediately knew that something was bad.
"Kacha kacha." Several reporters aimed at Shen Bi and Chen Zhiwen, took a few photos, and then ran away immediately.
"What's going on with you? Why are there reporters here?" Chen Zhiwen asked the people around him with a bad expression.
"Sorry, Chen Sheng, we didn't know they were reporters." A lobby manager turned pale with fright.
(End of chapter)
