Rebirth of the Industrial Tycoon

The acquisition capital of 1.5 billion US dollars is not a small amount. According to the exchange rate at the time, it was equivalent to more than 12 billion US dollars. Of course, Li Weidong would not be stupid enough to take out the money from his own pocket.

With so much money, Li Weidong naturally had to rely on financing. So Li Weidong went to the insurance company again and found the familiar Director Sui.

"Chairman Li, what brought you here!" Director Sui greeted him with a smile.

"I'm not here to borrow money from you, the God of Wealth!" Li Weidong didn't hide anything and directly explained his purpose.

After the guests and hosts were seated, Li Weidong said directly: "Director Sui, I have a project recently that needs financing, and I have to ask you for help."

"Is it about the acquisition of Jaguar Land Rover?" Director Sui asked directly.

Li Weidong nodded: "Yes, I am short of money to acquire Jaguar Land Rover!"

"It seems the news is true!" Director Sui sighed in surprise, and then said, "Chairman Li, you are really generous! Others start from building light cars, but you are Jaguar Land Rover!"

"I also want to overtake in corners!" Li Weidong said with a smile.

As more and more information is released, it is no longer a secret that Li Weidong acquired Jaguar Land Rover. Even the Science and Technology Commission called to ask Li Weidong about this matter.

At that time, China's automobile manufacturing industry was not yet developed, and the domestic automobile market was mainly occupied by major joint venture brands. It would be absolutely earth-shattering for a Chinese local enterprise, and it was a private enterprise, to directly acquire a foreign first-tier luxury automobile brand. It is normal for major events to attract attention at the ministry level.

In the eyes of the Chinese people, the acquisition of Jaguar Land Rover by domestic private enterprises is undoubtedly a battle of the snake-tonging-elephant level. It is not an exaggeration to say that it is somewhat overestimating its capabilities.

After all, in that era, ordinary Chinese families still mainly bought A-class and B-class cars. At that time, the national car sales champion was still the Jetta, the durable Santana was the first choice for units, and the Chery QQ was everywhere on the street. .

Many wealthy families may choose Honda Accord, Toyota Camry and Volkswagen Passat, but BBA is still too far away for ordinary wealthy families.

The domestic automobile manufacturing industry of independent brands is still at the stage of Chery QQ, BYD F3 and Beidou Star. Jaguar Land Rover, which is on the same level as Porsche, was to be acquired by a Chinese company, which really shocked everyone's jaws. The impact would be even worse than Geely's subsequent acquisition of Volvo.

After Director Sui was surprised, he asked: "I saw reports that the acquisition of Jaguar Land Rover would cost US$1.5 billion. Is this amount true or false?"

"It's true." Li Weidong nodded.

"There are also reports that the Indian Tata Group offered 2 billion U.S. dollars, but Ford did not sell it. Instead, it sold it to you for 1.5 billion U.S. dollars. Is this a smoke bomb put up by the media?" Director Sui asked next.

"This is also true." Li Weidong said again.

"Is Ford stupid? Didn't it lose $500 million?" Director Sui said immediately.

"Of course I gave some extra benefits to Ford. In the end, Ford still made a profit!" Li Weidong stopped talking when he said this.

Director Sui nodded suddenly: "I understand, business secrets!"

Then he changed his voice and asked: "The acquisition of Jaguar Land Rover requires 1.5 billion US dollars, how much short do you have? I will try my best to help you find a way."

"There is still a gap of 1.5 billion." Li Weidong replied with a smile.

"RMB?" Director Sui asked immediately.

"Dollars!" Li Weidong replied.

"You won't pay a penny for me!" Director Sui curled his lips, and then said: "My Chairman Li, you think too highly of me. One and a half billion US dollars is equivalent to more than 12 billion RMB. How can I I have the ability to raise so much money for you!

If it's just a fraction of 2 billion, I might still have the ability to convert 12 billion yuan into US dollars and give it to you. The approval from the China Banking Regulatory Commission and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange is beyond my control! How many relationships must be cleared, how many ministries and commissions must be visited, and how many seals must be stamped before we can get this thing done! "

Li Weidong smiled calmly: "Director Sui, don't worry! I didn't borrow these 1.5 billion US dollars in vain!"

"Nonsense, if you dare not pay interest, we will definitely go to court to sue you and then collect your puppy group to pay off the debt!" Director Sui said jokingly. Of course, he also knew that what Li Weidong said was not in vain. interest, but other benefits.

Li Weidong continued: "Director Sui, I have important news about the U.S. economy, which may help you avoid hundreds of millions of dollars in losses!"

Director Sui immediately became energetic and asked hurriedly: "Which American company is about to go bankrupt?"

In the bankruptcy cases of Enron and WorldCom, Li Weidong reminded Director Sui in advance. At that time, Director Sui was still working in the bank. With Li Weidong's information, he helped the bank's investment system avoid a large loss. Therefore, Director Sui The director was promoted to the insurance company.

Now that Li Weidong said important news that could avoid losses, Director Sui's first reaction was that another company was about to go bankrupt and he had to withdraw his investment quickly.

Li Weidong shook his head: "This time, it is not a problem of a certain company, but a problem of the overall economy."

Director Sui was stunned for a moment, his expression became solemn, and then he asked, "Similar to the Asian financial crisis?"

"It's worse than the Asian financial crisis!" Li Weidong paused and then said, "It's also worse than the Internet financial bubble!"

The Asian financial crisis has severely damaged the economies of East Asia and has also affected Russia and Latin America.

But instead of losing money, Wall Street made a lot of money.

At the time of the Asian financial crisis, investors from European and American countries scoured Asia at low prices and purchased many high-quality assets. Japan has never recovered since then, and South Korea has directly become a wage earner for Americans.

During the Internet bubble in 2000, U.S. investors indeed suffered heavy losses, but it did not damage the fundamentals of the U.S. economy.

After all, the Internet industry was not yet developed at that time, and the entire industry had limited impact on the economy. Internet talents were high-end talents at the time, and they had no worries about finding a job.

Therefore, when the Internet bubble burst, it was mainly investors in the financial sector who were injured. The real economy was not affected, and even the unemployment rate did not increase significantly.

But the subprime mortgage crisis in 2008 was different. This crisis directly harmed the foundation of the U.S. economy. More importantly, the subsequent impact of the subprime mortgage crisis is likely to lead to the decline of the United States. In the worst case, , and may even lead to the collapse of the U.S. dollar system.

Hearing that it was more serious than the Asian financial crisis, Director Sui suddenly took a breath of air and asked instinctively: "Chairman Li, do you mean to say that an economic crisis more serious than the 1997 Asian financial crisis is going to happen in the United States? "

"Yes, this may be the most serious one since the oil crisis in the 1970s, and it will definitely affect the world." Li Weidong replied seriously.

After thinking for a moment, Director Sui said, "Chairman Li, I am not a professional in this area. I may not understand many things you have said. I don't think it is better to do this. Let's make an appointment again and I will invest in the group." Invite someone from the Strategy Department to talk to you? "

"Of course." Li Weidong continued; "But I'm revealing such an important thing to you, and you have to help me get this 1.5 billion US dollars in financing."

Director Sui replied directly without thinking: "No problem. If the investment strategy department also agrees with your point of view, there will definitely be no problem in financing US$1.5 billion!"

It is more serious than the Asian financial crisis and will even affect the global economic crisis. In exchange for US$1.5 billion in financing, any financial institution will rush to do such a cost-effective deal.

…

Two days later, Li Weidong came to the insurance company again and was invited to a conference room.

There were more than a dozen people in the conference room, many of whom were senior executives of insurance companies, with levels and positions above Director Sui.

Of course, the most important ones are several economic experts.

Director Sui pointed to a somewhat bald man and introduced, "This is Director Wei Hang, director of our company's strategic investment department. Director Wei has served as director of the investment department at Merrill Lynch Bank, Deutsche Bank, and **** ”

"Hello, Chairman Li!" Director Wei shook hands with Li Weidong and said with a smile: "I have heard about Chairman Li for a long time, and I finally met him today."

Then Director Wei lowered his voice and continued: "Chairman Li, we have a long history. When I was at ****, I also invested in your Feiyue brand."

The bald James Bond is responsible for Feiyue's operations and management in the United States, including financing.

As an emerging sports brand with several top stars as endorsements, Feiyue is naturally popular in the eyes of many investors. Therefore, many investment banks participated in Feiyue's financing process.

After Li Weidong exchanged greetings with Director Wei, Director Sui introduced the next person. He was a man in his sixties, with gray temples, wearing glasses, and a gentle appearance.

"This is Professor Ye Yi. Professor Ye was once a professor in the Department of Finance at Princeton University in the United States. He also served as an investment consultant for Goldman Sachs and Citigroup. He is now a senior investment consultant in the Investment Strategy Department of our company."

Director Sui paused for a moment and then introduced, "During the Asian financial crisis in 1997, Professor Ye participated in the battle to defend the Hong Kong dollar and defeated George Soros. Professor Ye made great contributions to his class!"

I saw Professor Ye looking Li Weidong up and down, and then said: "Chairman Li, I have heard of your name for a long time. Before the Hong Kong Dollar Defense War, Professor Situ Jian once showed me your report on the Asian Financial Crisis. Analysis report, that’s really insightful! At that time, I wondered when such a powerful economist appeared in China!”

"My analysis was based on hindsight. Isn't it true insight?" Li Weidong thought to himself.

The two exchanged pleasantries for a while, and Director Sui began to introduce the third expert. This man was a young man in his early forties and a mixed race.

"This is Evans-Chen, who is also a senior consultant in the investment strategy department of our company. Consultant Chen once worked on Wall Street and managed many hedge funds. He is the famous Black Knight on Wall Street!" Director Sui continued to introduce.

"My Chinese name is Chen Aisi." Evans-Chen's Mandarin still has some "foreign flavor".

Li Weidong knows that the Black Samurai in the financial field are people who specialize in financial sniping and then profit from it. Simply put, they are people who specialize in buying and selling at the expense of others and benefiting themselves in the financial world. The famous Soros is the originator of the Black Samurai in Wall Street. .

Correspondingly, there is a kind of financial white warrior, which is a group that specializes in rescuing companies. When companies encounter difficulties, they help companies overcome difficulties and help companies make a comeback at the minimum cost. Of course, the white warrior will be paid for this process.

Director Sui introduced several more experts, then everyone took their seats and the meeting officially began.

Director Wei was the first to speak, and he said: "Chairman Li, I know you once predicted the Asian financial crisis and the bankruptcy of Enron and WorldCom. This time you predicted that the United States will usher in an extraordinary crisis. "Can we talk about the serious economic crisis in detail?"

"Okay, let me tell you the conclusion first. According to my observation, a subprime mortgage crisis is about to break out in the United States. It will affect the entire world and eventually cause a global economic crisis." Li Weidong replied.

"Subprime mortgage crisis? Is it the subprime mortgage market in the United States?" Professor Ye asked.

"Yes, it's the subprime mortgage market." Li Weidong nodded.

"Chairman Li, your basis, could it be the bankruptcy protection of New Century Financial?" This time it was the black warrior Chen Aisi who spoke. His tone was full of provocation, and he obviously did not agree with Li Weidong's point of view. .

"New Century Finance is just one of the indicators. In addition, the decline in housing transaction volume in the United States and the increase in mortgage default rates can be used as a precursor to a comprehensive crisis in the subprime mortgage market!" Li Weidong replied.

New Century Financial is a well-known subprime lending institution in the United States. The company filed for bankruptcy in April 2007, causing the U.S. stock market to plummet.

Ordinarily, investors should be alert to the subprime mortgage crisis at this time. However, in June, the U.S. stock market rose again, which made the majority of investors believe that the market was still good and underestimated the subprime mortgage crisis. the severity of.

Just listen to Li Weidong continue to say: "The loan policy in the United States is too loose, especially the threshold for subprime loans is very low, and supervision is very unfavorable. It is no exaggeration to say that in the United States now, even a dog can get money from banks to the loan!”

What Li Weidong said was really not an exaggeration. In the United States at that time, someone really got a loan from a bank in the name of a dog.

Li Weidong continued: "Subprime loans are mainly used in the housing loan market. If housing prices have been rising, there should be no problem. But once housing prices stop rising or even fall, then subprime loans will inevitably have a large number of bad debts.

It would not be terrible if it were just the bad debts of subprime loans. What is terrible is that other markets derived from subprime loans, such as CDS, CDO and other financial products, will collapse.

With the current size of CDS and CDO in the US financial market, once they collapse, the entire US finance industry will fall like dominoes. The decline in U.S. housing sales is the first domino..."

"We all understand the basic financial knowledge you mentioned!" Chen Aisi interrupted Li Weidong impatiently. He continued: "I have been paying attention to the CDO situation in the United States, CDOs related to the subprime loan market. Most of the ratings are relatively high. Since this year, the ratings of relevant CDOs have been A or above. "

"Is the rating you are looking at S\u0026P's or Moody's?" Li Weidong asked immediately.

There are three major rating agencies in the world, namely Standard \u0026 Poor's, Moody's Investors Service, and Fitch Ratings. Among them, Fitch is in the United Kingdom, and S\u0026P and Moody's are both in the United States.

Chen Aisi replied: "S\u0026P's and Moody's are both similar!"

"The difference is huge!" Li Weidong smiled slightly, and then said: "If I, as a customer, go to S\u0026P for ratings, and they dare to give me a low rating, I will immediately switch to Moody's. S\u0026P will never think of me. Get a penny of business here, and the opposite is resolute!”

"You mean, S\u0026P and Moody's cheated on their ratings?" As soon as Chen Aisi finished speaking, she realized that she had been a little hasty.

As a former Black Knight of Wall Street, how could he not know the ratings of S\u0026P and Moody’s?

A rating company must not only be professional enough, but also be impartial.

However, whether it is S\u0026P or Moody's, they are commercial institutions, aiming to make profits, and the objects of their ratings are all their customers.

It may be difficult for a commercial profit-making organization to talk about "fairness" when facing customers.

As Li Weidong said, if S\u0026P gives a customer a low rating, the customer will turn to Moody's. In the same way, Moody's rated customers too low, and the customers turned around and went to S\u0026P.

The elites on Wall Street are naturally aware of this situation, but they all pretend to be confused and do not pierce the window paper.

Many people here have working experience on Wall Street and are well aware of the operations of rating agencies.

A few seconds later, Chen Aisi sighed helplessly: "Okay, I admit that the rating agency will probably give the customer a higher investment rating."

Li Weidong followed Chen Aisi's words and continued: "I think everyone here knows that even S\u0026P or Moody's are unreliable. This is another basis for my belief that a subprime mortgage crisis will inevitably break out in the United States.

Credit rating agencies have distorted ratings for their own interests, and this has become the norm, which means that the United States is extremely relaxed or even ineffective in regulating financial and monetary policies.

The subprime loan market in the United States is already full of crises. The government has not implemented strict supervision in terms of policies. It has simply let it go and made the problem worse. If you don't put it in danger, who will? "