Rebirth of the Age of Wealth

Chapter 432 Academic Factions

As soon as Li Weidong finished speaking, everyone standing around was stunned, but they soon guessed that Li Weidong must have made a mistake.

The 100 million that Ma Yun mentioned just now may, first of all, be an imaginary number and not accurate, just to attract Li Weidong's attention.

Second, even if the 100 million is true, Ma Yun is talking about RMB, not U.S. dollars. They are all Chinese who speak in U.S. dollars.

Even 100 million yuan is already the ceiling for domestic venture capital. So far, no company has been able to obtain so much funding at once.

Moreover, the best in the domestic investment community is Jingwei Investment, and what Jingwei Investment is best at is taking a small approach and getting involved in the company when it is starting up.

Even in the later period of additional investment, it is difficult to invest more than this amount. Can such a large amount still be called venture capital?

If there is no guaranteed profit, who would have the courage to spend 100 million on a project that may suffer losses this year?

After all, with a net worth of 100 million, he is already qualified to be among the top 50 richest people in China today!

The vice presidents and Zhang Dongshuo standing next to Li Weidong were a little embarrassed. Of course, they simply thought that Li Weidong had mistaken the currency type.

Several Internet gurus across the street, in addition to thinking that Li Weidong might have mistaken the currency type, also had other ideas.

The smile on his face said a lot. I guess he was also thinking in his heart, is the U.S. dollar so worthless now?

They do not doubt that Li Weidong can spend 100 million US dollars. Although they are not in Li Weidong's inner circle, they have some understanding of Li Weidong's net worth.

There are countless industries under Li Weidong's name, spanning all walks of life. The names of Jingwei Investment or Xinsheng Holdings can be seen in the lists of major shareholders of many listed companies!

But even so, they still have doubts about Li Weidong's investment of 100 million US dollars. Assets are one thing, but spending so much cash is another.

And according to their understanding of Li Weidong, he is not the kind of person who puts all his efforts into it, and Ma Yun is not worthy of his attention.

Although these people respect Li Weidong, they still don't know enough about Li Weidong due to their own vision and height. This idea is normal.

The most embarrassing thing was Ma Yun. He didn't expect that Li Weidong only listened to a few words from him and said to invest 100 million US dollars!

If he hadn't looked at Li Weidong's affirmative tone and sincere expression, he seemed to have thought that Li Weidong was picking on him!

He himself knows his ability and worth, and 100 million yuan already makes him feel that it is worth every penny.

As for 100 million U.S. dollars, that's just a joke. If it really is 100 million U.S. dollars, he can do whatever Li Weidong asks him to do.

"Chairman, I'm talking about 100 million yuan!" Ma Yun smiled awkwardly. As for the request Li Weidong mentioned, he did not mention it.

So what if it’s RMB, will it affect Li Weidong’s request?

This is a benefactor, so of course you will be treated like a benefactor. What’s wrong with giving you so much money and a few requests? Not to mention eating and playing with you, even sleeping with you!

"RMB?" Li Weidong's face was slightly embarrassed, but it was fleeting and well hidden, at least not seen by a few people.

The expressions on the faces of the people next to them were quite rich. They wanted to laugh, but they didn't dare, but that meant it was true.

"What is this money enough for? Online shopping is a new thing. If there are no benefits, who would believe it? You can't rely on large subsidies to promote it!"

"There are also payment channels and the construction of logistics channels. These also require a lot of funds. How many years can this US$100 million last?"

Although embarrassed, Li Weidong still found several reasonable ways to use the 100 million US dollars, otherwise it would appear that he had made a strategic mistake.

Moreover, this kind of money-burning drama of distributing subsidies was a real experience for him in later generations. The effect was excellent and the participation rate could reach the limit in a short period of time.

Don’t underestimate the subsidy of three yuan and two yuan, it will make many people who want to try but have not tried boldly take this step.

Once most people enjoy the convenience of online shopping, they will become addicted!

"Currently, our B2B payment channel uses Minsheng Bank's online banking, and our cooperation is very pleasant. There are basically no handling fees!" Ma Yun explained.

It wasn't that he emphasized it deliberately, but he found that a group of people came behind him, including Li Shihui, the chairman of Minsheng Bank.

Although Ma Yun knew Li Shihui, he could guarantee that Li Shihui did not know him.

Minsheng Bank is not the first bank in China to open online business, but it is definitely the first bank that can actually handle banking services.

It is naturally difficult for a joint venture bank to win this first place, otherwise there will be great resistance. However, since the first online bank was born in the United States, their preparations have begun under the instruction of Li Weidong.

The preparation work was sufficient, so the development speed was very fast. The first online banking transfer, the first online inter-bank transfer, and the first online payment were all pioneered by them.

Minsheng Bank's online business now accounts for about 8% of the total business volume. In cities with large network coverage like Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen, it can even reach more than 20%.

This is not just a number. The expenditure cost of these business volumes is much lower than that of offline business, and the savings are real profits.

Minsheng Bank is a relatively avant-garde bank. The fat that many banks are reluctant to part with is not a problem here at Minsheng Bank. Especially in order to promote online banking, many offline fee-based services are free online!

It’s not surprising that Alibaba chooses Minsheng Bank. Transfers and cash withdrawals in other places are free of charge. If anyone doesn’t use it, isn’t that stupid?

What handling fees are charged for transfers? I use online banking. In the end, it is still transferred internally. Charging this handling fee is of no use.

Nowadays, everything is connected to the Internet. Although it is a relatively special network, the cost of one more or one less business will be huge.

It's easier than anything else to attract a few customers, and most of those who have such needs are customers with relatively large amounts of capital, and most of them are business customers.

Naturally, business turnover is high, and it is inevitable to get a loan from a bank. This is the basis for making money. Handling fees may seem high, but they only account for a small proportion.

Therefore, Minsheng Bank is a reformer, which makes some large state-owned banks feel uncomfortable, but it is just uncomfortable.

There is competition among banks, but there is no competition among managers. The two cannot be confused!

So don’t believe who is a competitor. The three major communication companies in the future are competing, but their leaders are transferred to each other. Where do you think the competition comes from?

Moreover, some regulations cannot be decided by any one bank. Minsheng Bank can waive various handling fees, but they cannot!

This is the difference in competitiveness caused by differences in systems!

Ma Yun continued: "Logistics channels are better in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Shanghai and some big cities. There are many express delivery companies, but other places still have to rely on postal services and Huitong Logistics!"

He wanted to explain what he had learned to Li Weidong. Of course, he still remembered what Li Weidong said about the subsidy!

"I won't ask about this. You and Mr. Zheng can discuss the specific amount of funds," Li Weidong pondered for a moment and then added, "And Mr. Zou!"

Zheng Sijing and Mr. Zou immediately cheered up. This was a change, a change in Li Weidong's attitude towards the two investment companies.

In the past, although it was not stated explicitly, everyone knew that one of them was in charge of internal affairs and the other was in charge of external affairs, and they had always pursued a policy of non-crossing and non-interference.

But things seem to be changing now, but when you think about it, it becomes clear that the money from Peking Capital has to be spent.

Investing domestically in the form of venture capital is also a method, and it is always easier than transferring money to other accounts.

"In addition, I have a request!" Li Weidong muttered, as if thinking about how to express it.

"Chairman, tell me!" Ma Yun's attitude was very upright, but she was actually very uneasy inside.

Li Weidong dared to promise to invest 100 million U.S. dollars. Although the specific amount was not specified separately, it would definitely be around this amount.

With so much money coming in, it is natural to have suitable shares. People are either borrowing or investing, but no one dares to lend him so much money!

When a large amount of money comes in, the company's valuation will change, and their group's net worth will definitely skyrocket, but it also means that the company's control will change.

This was the source of Ma Yun's anxiety, but he didn't want to give up this opportunity, and he couldn't give it up. If he gave up, he would miss an opportunity.

"I hope that others know Ma Yun because of Ali, not because Ma Yun knows Ali!" Li Weidong hesitated and said.

He also wondered, if so, is this still the same Teacher Ma? Is he still capable of taking Ali to take off?

But if Teacher Ma is allowed to cause trouble, it will not be a good thing after all!

The scene suddenly became a little still. Almost everyone thought that Li Weidong would make a request for equity, but they did not expect that it would be such a vague statement.

The literal meaning is easy to understand, and the meaning behind the literal words is also easy to understand, but these words are confusing.

Ma Yun suddenly felt relieved. Although he didn't understand what he said and couldn't figure it out, he understood one thing.

He is still the person in charge of Alibaba. Li Weidong has no requirements for this position, otherwise he would not say such things!

"Chairman, I will definitely remember your teachings!" Ma Yun was not as high-spirited as she would be in the future. Naturally, she could not understand Li Weidong's words, but it did not prevent her from flattering her.

"Okay, you can talk about the rest!" With that, Li Weidong turned and walked towards the door.

A few people were left looking at each other, but these Internet celebrities looked at Ma Yun, and a sour taste suddenly rose in their hearts. This was jealousy.

They are now actively planning to go public in the United States, and the funds raised are only tens of millions of dollars. They did not expect that their second round of financing would already reach this scale.

They couldn't help but wonder, why did Li Weidong have the courage to invest such a large amount in this company? Is this really a giant?

Moreover, they just thought that Li Weidong might not be able to easily come up with so much money, but from his words, it seemed that he had never hesitated about money.

A normal person has a hundred dollars in his hand. If he is asked to spend one dollar, he will not hesitate. If he is asked to spend ten dollars, he should think about it a little bit.

If you spend fifty yuan, you may hesitate to join. If you spend a hundred yuan, you may refuse directly.

But Li Weidong spent 100 million US dollars as if it was a joke, which means that Li Weidong must have much more money than this.

The three of them looked at each other. It seemed that whether it was listed or not was not that important. It would be better if there was another round of financing.

But it's a little late. The time for their listing has almost been set. Just recently, Wanguo Securities became their recommendation agency, and things went smoothly.

Li Weidong's attitude is completely different between listing in the United States and listing in China. As long as it can be listed in the United States, Li Weidong will strongly support it.

Especially in this big bubble now, when the bubble starts to be squeezed after a while, if he buys back some stocks, he will completely make money from Americans, and he will be happy to do so.

And the earlier, the better. The valuation may be different one day earlier, so Wanguo Securities naturally actively promotes it.

Li Weidong walked towards the door, followed by many people sending Li Weidong off, which was very spectacular.

Li Weidong was about to get in the car when Zhang Dongshuo suddenly came over and said: "Chairman, Mr. Wu, Mr. Li and Director Lin, are they coming soon?"

"They came together?" Li Weidong asked in surprise after hearing this.

"Well, after they had a meeting in the morning, I booked the same flight for them, and now they have received it!" Zhang Dongshuo answered truthfully.

These three people are members of the advisory committee hired by Xinsheng Holdings. They came to Qizhou to attend the company's annual meeting. They were supposed to arrive yesterday to attend today's pre-meeting meeting, but the top management held a relatively important economic meeting today.

These people are think tanks and leading economics experts. It is a part-time job to check the pulse of Li Weidong's company, but it is their job to check the pulse of the country's economy.

That's why they caught the flight to Qizhou after the meeting. With Li Weidong's money, they had to help Li Weidong. There is no such thing as a leader.

These days, it is popular for experts and scholars to work part-time as consultants or independent directors in companies. A few years ago, the Federation of Industry and Commerce held a meeting in Beijing. As the vice chairman, Li Weidong naturally had to attend, and he met several famous economists in later generations.

I didn't think too much at the time, so I invited several experts to check the company's pulse. These were all at the level of deans, and their professional knowledge was quite impressive.

It's just that Li Weidong ignored one important thing. Not only does martial arts have sects, but there are also sects in academia, especially economics.

When martial arts sects have disputes, they set up an arena, where skill determines victory or defeat, and fists determine life or death, but academic sects cannot do it this way.

Going back and forth is not only time-consuming and protracted, but also the debate cannot produce any results.

And Li Weidong relied on the memory of his previous life to invite several big men, and they gave him face, but Li Weidong didn't know that these people belonged to different factions.

Now there is trouble. They are all powerful figures and have great connections. Li Weidong doesn't want to mess with any of them.

The key point is that there is no need to mess with him. He is a rough guy and does not want to get involved in the academic discussion between the two big guys.

But after the contract is signed, he can't fire him without reason. This would be too offending.

Recently, it was revealed that Mr. Li’s children appeared on the shareholder lists of some listed companies and made several times their profits from stock trading. This is somewhat abnormal and reflects the mistakes of the joint-stock reform!

It depends on the matter and the person, and finally it comes to academics. There are stains on academics, people have taken advantage of them, and there are constant criticisms!

Li Weidong was really afraid that the two of them would fight on the same flight.

(End of chapter)