Rebirth of England

The Cavendish Trust previously owned by Barron was acquired by the British Youcheng Group for US$2.85 billion, and the subsequent restructuring capital injected into it was only about US$3 billion.

The value of AIA, on the other hand, has exceeded US$20 billion - this is despite the impact of the subprime mortgage crisis and the decline in the value of the company in the entire market.

Because the reason why American International Group has fallen into its current situation is that their financial department is too involved in the secondary securities insurance business, and their other businesses do not actually have big problems. This is also the reason why the American government One of the main reasons for finally being willing to rescue it.

So merging AIA Insurance Company through AIA Group, in the eyes of the outside world, is a proper move...

"Your Highness the Duke, we do have the idea of ​​selling some assets, but currently we are only preparing to sell 49% of the shares of AIA to introduce new investors to it..."

Next, when Barron met with Edward Liddy, chairman and CEO of American International Group, the other party said:

"And there are also many companies interested in this, including China Life Insurance and Prudential Group of England, which hope to discuss this matter."

"If I were you, I'm afraid I wouldn't make such a choice, Mr. Li Di."

Barron shook his head and said.

"why?"

Although it seemed to Edward that from Barron's position, it was not strange to say such a thing, he still asked with a little curiosity.

"What American International Group needs most now is funds and time. Among them, time is a higher priority, so that your losses in CDS will not have too many chain reactions and accumulate."

Edward had to agree with what Barron said. He heard the British Duke in front of him continue to say:

"If the U.S. government could directly spend more than 150 billion US dollars to rescue AIG from the beginning, I'm afraid your situation would have been under control. But the key is that this decision could not have been made a few months ago. In the end, it can only The first $85 billion bailout is just like a ploy to add fuel to the fire, but it cannot decisively solve the problem. "

"It seems like this now, Your Highness the Duke, but the situation at that time..."

Indeed, from now on, what Barron said is the right approach, but the overall picture can only be seen clearly after the dust has settled. As for four or five months ago...at that time, American International Group, not to mention itself, It’s not clear what a big hole they have fallen into. Even if they really knew it, how could they dare to report it truthfully?

If the American government knew at that time that it would require more than 150 billion US dollars, or even close to 200 billion US dollars, to successfully rescue it, I am afraid that even the bankruptcy of American International Group would have a greater chain reaction. Their decision to rescue this company, It's not that easy to make.

"Yes, it won't help to say this now, but at least there are still things that can be done. You and I both know, sir, that AIG cannot continue to retain all of its business. There must be choices, and AIA is not only valuable Relatively higher, and the main business is in Asia, so it is the most suitable to exchange for precious funds..."

"Even if the sale of AIA is an option, Your Highness the Duke, you have said that time and funds are what we need, so at this time, we also need a sincere bid."

Yes, Edward Liddy made it clear that in the end they still have to look at the bid to make the decision!

…

"We have communicated with the personnel of the Ministry of Finance today. Your Highness the Duke, they welcome our acquisition, and the relevant regulatory agencies will not conduct too strict review of it..."

Barron still agrees with Amber Sheehan’s words. After all, under the current circumstances, whether it is for the sake of stabilizing the U.S. financial system or the party’s “struggle” for the election situation, this kind of thing can help the U.S. international economy. Groups that carry out self-help acquisitions will receive special treatment.

What's more, they are the capital of Britain and are not targets that need to be carefully scrutinized.

After arriving in New York, Barron moved into a manor on Long Island. Relatively speaking, the environment here was more satisfactory to Barron than the penthouse in Manhattan.

Amber Sheehan had also come from London a long time ago to personally take charge of the acquisition of AIA-this acquisition is destined to become the largest insurance company merger and acquisition in the world this year.

In the pursuit of AIA, it seems that AIA Group is still in a relatively favorable position. Currently, their two biggest competitors are China Life Insurance and the other British Insurance Company, which ranks No. One Prudential Group.

However, China Life is only prepared to purchase part of AIA’s shares. If it hopes to acquire the entire AIA, there is no doubt that due to certain factors, it will inevitably face strict scrutiny from relevant parties in the United States. It is very likely that the acquisition of Unocal by PetroChina will happen again. The company's mistakes.

As for Prudential...

They already have a large amount of business in Asia. Prudential has been rooted in the Asian market for nearly a hundred years. It currently has more than 20 million customers in Asia and more than $60 billion in assets in 13 markets in the region. It is one of the largest foreign insurance companies in Asia.

Last year, Asian business accounted for one-third of Prudential's global sales and half of its profits.

This is why they are interested in acquiring AIA and even acquiring it.

According to the analysis of the think tank led by Barron, if Prudential completes the acquisition of AIA, then 80% to 90% of Prudential's future sales and profits will come from the Asian market, and Prudential will gain a dominant position in the region.

In Barron's previous life, Prudential had intended to acquire AIA, but the acquisition ended in failure.

After all, a merger of this scale, involving two insurance companies of this scale, will inevitably be reviewed by relevant regulatory agencies in various countries in Asia, and even relevant agencies in the European Union and the United States will conduct reviews.

Moreover, AIA will also consider whether there will be any conflicts with the relevant businesses of the original Prudential after the acquisition.

In this way, with the current scale of the Friendship Insurance Group and the huge gap between its business in Asia and that of AIA, it is easier for it to win in this merger.

After all, time is also very important for American International Group, and even if the regulatory review can be passed, the time required will be longer and longer as the scale and market share of the two parties to the merger increase.

In this regard, I am afraid that American International Group will not have such great patience to wait.

In addition, on the American government side, it is not just Barron's side. After hiring JPMorgan Chase as the service provider for their acquisition of AIA Insurance Company under American International Group, Jamie Dimon also used JPMorgan Chase's connections to start running for this...