Reborn Capital Empire

Chapter 540 The Age of Intelligence

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"Mr. Guo, why did you insist on acquiring Enron when everyone is not optimistic?"

"First, Enron is the largest electricity supplier and natural gas pipeline company in the United States, and Pacific Energy wants to be a top company in the field of electricity and natural gas, and Enron's assets in public utilities cannot be bypassed. Second, although Enron's liabilities It was close to $40 billion, but only one-fifth of the current liabilities was about $8 billion, and the rest were long-term debts over a year. At that time, I had enough funds to solve Enron's financial predicament. Third , California's energy crisis has become a thing of the past, and stable and continuous revenue from electricity can effectively balance debt."

“In the end, it turns out that today Pacific Energy Group, despite taking over the Enron business and carrying a lot of debt, has not slowed down the company’s development. Today we are the world’s largest electricity supplier and natural gas distributor. and retail companies, providing integrated electricity and natural gas services to 45 million individual customers and 130,000 commercial customers worldwide."

"Pacific Energy Group has indeed achieved amazing results under your leadership. But I heard that because of Enron's debt problems, you came close to fighting with the creditors of Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, and Northern Trust?"

"That's just a rumor from the outside world. In fact, we're just arguing more intensely."

"why?"

"They asked me to repay Enron's debt on schedule, and I wanted three-quarters of the current debt to be deferred, and they asked for a price concession. Because of our respective interests, we have little chance of peace."

No one foolishly buys a company and uses their precious liquidity to pay off its debts. The most direct way is to improve the level of operation and management, reduce expenses through layoffs and streamline administration, then invest to expand revenue, and use the company’s own earnings to pay off debts.

The benefit of this is tax relief.

You must know that in the United States, China, and even in most countries, the comprehensive tax, including corporate income tax and deed tax, paid by the company is close to 45% of the company's gross profit.

The higher a company's indebtedness, the lower the tax base it will be taxed on after paying off interest and part of the debt.

Therefore, in order to bring a company back to life, in addition to improving the internal management level, the most appropriate way is to increase the total assets of the company by means of investment, thereby increasing its revenue, and using revenue to repay debts.

Guo Shouyun did just that when he acquired Enron.

"Then how did you reach an agreement in the end?"

"Take a step back, negotiation is the best way to solve the problem."

Even so, in fact, all of Enron's current debts have become long-term debts, and the interest is only 6.4%! Because Enron's creditors knew very well that if he didn't buy it, the result of Enron's bankruptcy would be that everyone would lose everything.

Although the interest is now reduced, at least the investment is still profitable. Between losses and gains, anyone can choose what is in their favor.

However, there is no need for such a thing to be made public. Be vague and leave some face for the major financial companies to face everyone.

"Some people say that Mr. Guo's acquisition of Universal and Warner Records was a robbery, do you agree?"

"There is no deal in the world that is robbery. If you lose money in a deal, it can only be said that you lack the ability to negotiate favorable conditions for yourself. AOL Time Warner and Vivendi, because of bad decision-making and blind expansion That led to their financial crisis, and they needed to sell off some of their businesses to get themselves out of the woods. Even if it wasn't Matrix, there would be another consortium buying Universal and Warner Music."

"Can you tell me why you bought Apple?"

"There are a lot of geniuses in this world, and Steve is one of them. He's the most leadership, innovative, and amazingly visionary entrepreneur I've ever seen. I don't invest in Apple for Apple. It's about Steve Jobs. If Apple doesn't have him, there's no investment value."

"Unbelievable that you would rate Mr. Jobs so highly! Know that in the eyes of many who have worked with him, he is a true tyrant. Stubborn, irascible, insistent, even when he is unhappy Steve Wozniak and Ro Wayne, who co-founded Apple with Jobs, both left Apple because they couldn't stand his dictatorship. John Sculley, Michael Spindler, and Jill Amelio couldn't coexist with Steve Jobs."

Guo Shouyun smiled, "Accurately, when Michael Spindler was in charge of Apple, Steve had already left. So they didn't have much chance to contact each other. The conflict between them is more about NEXT. product competition with Apple."

“…Also, the reason they couldn’t coexist with Steve was because of a lack of understanding and communication between them and a lack of trust in him. In my opinion, Steve is a genius in tech and good at discovering Talent and the direction of future technology development, he needs a space to display his talents without restrictions. The success of the iPod proves this."

"That's why you rarely interfere with Apple's management?"

"Well! I'm not good at managing companies. I don't know Apple as well as Steve, and I don't understand the future development trend of consumer electronics. Why should I interfere with Apple's operations?"

"But I heard that the iPod and iMacG3, and even Apple OSX system software, iTunes music playback software, and many other software, have your designs? Even Apple design director Jonathan Ivey and software department director Avi Troni Andu praises you as a genius in both fields."

"Internet companies are also software companies, but I am good at this. As for the appearance of hardware, I may have some unique aesthetics. But a single breakthrough does not mean you are completely good at this field."

"Mr. Guo is too modest."

"I'm just telling the truth."

"Mr. Guo trusts Mr. Jobs so much, didn't he think that Apple might repeat the same mistakes under his leadership and go into decline like Next?"

"Next isn't dying, it just hasn't found a way to prove itself for a limited time. And without next's step OS, there wouldn't be Apple's amazing OSX OS right now."

"The OSX operating system, while powerful, has not shaken Microsoft's dominance in the field."

"I believe in Apple's future, and I believe that OSX can become a computer operating system that rivals Windows in the future."

After looking at your interview catalogue, "Your two speeches at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and Harvard University this year have left a deep impression on the world's technology community. Especially your exposition of the future of the Internet, as well as cloud computing, The predictions of future technologies such as data and artificial intelligence are admirable and curious, can you elaborate?”

"What I want to say, and what I'm sure about, was actually said in both speeches. As for the more detailed things, I'm currently working on a book to detail my understanding of the Internet and the future. I believe that time will come. , where the curious will find the answer."

"Books?" Jacques Vaughan's eyes lit up. "May I know the names?"

"The Age of Intelligence!" Guo Shouyun nodded and said.

Big people like to write books and talk, because it can not only bring fame to themselves, enhance the influence of the industry, but even leave a name in the history.

In 1999, Bill Gates' "Future Speed" became famous all over the world, and Guo Shouyun also hoped that he could use a "Intelligent Age" to establish his status as the godfather in the Internet field.

"The age of intelligence? How much has Mr. Guo wrote in this book? When will it be published?"

"Half of it has been completed, and it will probably be published next year!"

"I think it will be on the New York Times, Amazon bestseller lists!"

"I hope so too!"

"Mr. Guo~www.wuxiaspot.com~ Now it is rumored that Phoenix has reached a merger agreement with National City Bank, is that true?"

"Yes. We have submitted a merger application to the Federal Reserve and the Department of Commerce, and once approved, National City Bank will be delisted from the New York Stock Exchange and the two sides will enter the integration phase."

After Jacques Vaughn nodded, "Phoenix has far surpassed National City Bank in terms of asset size and yield. What made you choose to merge with it?"

"Among all the big banks in the U.S., National City Bank is one of the fastest growing, and CEO Ruben Durstein is also an excellent banker. It's a good thing in itself."

"After the merger between the two parties, how will the equity be distributed? What is the name of the new company? How will the leadership be established?"

"The name of the new company will be 'Phoenix Bank'; I will continue to serve as chairman of the company's board of directors, with Stephen Bryan as CEO, Ruben Durstein as COO, Michael Moretz as co-CEO, and the rest will be Announced on the company's website. As for the share allocation, you will know when the company goes public."

"Mr. Guo is going to list Phoenix Bank?"

"certainly!"

"What about the time?"

"The end of next year!"

"I remember that Ruby's LinkedIn company has now started its roadshow, and Google and Unocal have also continued to report listing news, and now Phoenix Bank is added." After a pause, "Can I understand that Mr. Guo is going to Now start to push your companies to go public?"

Guo Shouyun nodded affirmatively.

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