The Industrial Giant Reborn

As early as last year, two major personnel changes occurred in Hong Kong. The first was that Governor Youde suddenly passed away due to acute illness. The British sent a new Governor Wilson, and HSBC Bank’s most successful chief executive, Shen Bi, He also retired because the time had come, and the name of his successor was Davis. For the former, Chen Zhiwen would still give some respect, while for the latter, it was just so-so. Although HSBC is still the leader in the banking industry in Hong Kong today, It can even become one of the world's top banks in the future. However, Chen Zhiwen no longer has any dependence on it, so naturally he doesn't care much about it.

"How much is the limit for each family?" Many people asked quickly. As long as the interest is not outrageously high, they who are in the real estate business don't care much about it, let alone that it is obviously lower than the market interest now. But it can’t really be too low. At most, it can be kept a little higher than the deposit interest. No one will believe that HSBC will subsidize them at a loss. At most, it will not make any money. But the limit is different. The higher the limit, they The more properties and stocks that can be acquired, this will lead to a qualitative change.

"This needs to be discussed separately between us. It will not be a lot, but it will not be less, enough for everyone to buy back enough shares." Davis said.

"Mr. Governor, we are very willing to contribute to Hong Kong's economy, but I already own 39.9% of the shares of Cheung Kong Holdings. According to the listing laws and regulations, if we continue to acquire, a comprehensive takeover offer will be triggered." Li Jiacheng asked Said: "How to solve this problem?"

"Yeah?" Several others agreed. Among them, the shares controlled by some are close to the upper limit stipulated by law, or are close to it, and may exceed it once they continue to make acquisitions.

Even Chen Zhiwen is also very concerned. According to legal regulations, the maximum share limit for foreign acquirers is 34.9%. Once it exceeds 35%, a takeover offer will be triggered. In previous acquisitions, this was like a tightrope, restricting But if he is the controller of the company itself, after controlling the company for more than two years, he can obtain an additional 5% of the shares, which means the upper limit is increased to 39.9%.

The original intention of this law is to protect British-owned enterprises. When the major shareholders hold close to 40% of the shares, it is almost a daydream for outsiders to acquire them. Unfortunately, the British-owned giants, except for Swire, are all controllers. With less than 10% of the shares, it was impossible to hold up the wall. In the end, they were all defeated by Chinese capital. However, the law has been retained. The entire Chinese capital enterprises in Hong Kong are restricted by this. Otherwise, it is estimated that there will be There are many companies that will continue to increase their stakes, especially when Chen Zhiwen exists.

Hong Kong Governor Wilson said: "Regarding this, the Hong Kong government will amend a temporary law to allow listed companies to hold more than 35% of the shares, but not more than 45%. Once you hold more than 35% or 40% of the shares, Shares can be held legally even if the law is reinstated in the future, but this is only a one-time law. If you reduce your shares in the future, you will not be able to regain the limit this time."

"45%?" Everyone also discussed in low voices among themselves. Although it only increased by 5%, it was actually enough. Not everyone has enough money to desperately acquire. Besides, it is a listed company after all. It is still used to make money. If you have too many shares, it will make it difficult to operate. The only pity is that you cannot cash out at will in the future, otherwise this once-in-a-century blessing opportunity will be gone. The Hong Kong government is not that stupid. They I just want to relax a little this time.

After a while, Hong Kong's political and business groups also reached an agreement. HSBC would come forward to lend low-interest loans to the controllers of the relevant listed companies, allowing them to buy back the company's shares. The specific amount is generally the funds needed to acquire the stocks. , however, it is rare that the Hong Kong government authorizes low interest rates. Whether it is HSBC or related personnel, they may want to take this opportunity to get more funds. The specific amount depends on their own abilities.

Chen Zhiwen didn't really care about HSBC's low-interest loan, but he still arranged for two listed companies, Wharf and Hong Kong Electric, to negotiate with HSBC. However, the bulk of the shares to be repurchased this time had to be prepared by himself earlier. Okay 20 billion Hong Kong dollars.

After returning to Connaught Building, Chen Zhiwen called Dong Youwei from Landmark and Zhou Jiayang from Hutchison Land. Land was the one who took the lead in this big acquisition plan.

At present, his investment-heavy companies are mainly Land and Hutchison. The former is responsible for all real estate and stock market investments in Hong Kong, plus future real estate investment and hotel investment in the mainland and even Southeast Asia. The latter, Hutchison, is light on real estate and heavy on infrastructure. As well as some basic service industries, such as global port investment, mainland highway investment, mainland automobile industry-related industry chain investment, global automobile sales terminal investment, and global mining investment.

The division of labor between the two is clear, but there are no absolute restrictions. They do not allow the other to enter their own territory. There is no problem if it is appropriate. For example, if Hutchison Whampoa wants to invest in real estate, and Land wants to invest in some basic infrastructure, it will be fine, as long as there is no malicious competition. That's good. This is also the freedom that Chen Zhiwen granted to his subordinates. After all, they are all related industries. But on the surface, if it is a large project led by Chen Zhiwen himself, it will still be carried out according to this basic logic.

This time, with the help of HK$50 billion in funds prepared in advance for the 1987 stock market crash, and the massive depreciation of assets caused by the global economic collapse, it was time for these two capital giants to take action again.

"Come, drink some tea. I grew this on a farm in Brazil, South America. I sent some here specially." Chen Zhiwen greeted the two with a smile.

In his early years, he purchased a large amount of land when Brazil still had freehold land rights. Regardless of the future cost-effectiveness, these lands were permanent property rights. But today, Brazilian laws have changed and the land has an expiry date, ranging from 70-999. The years vary. Although it is impossible for people to live that long in this life, the freehold property rights are more popular. Of course, the various taxes that should be paid still have to be paid, otherwise the land will still be taken back.

These lands have now entered the stage of gradual development, and some have been turned into farms. However, Chen Zhiwen will not really develop agriculture on a large scale in Brazil. At most, he will invest some money to transform the land into a plantable one. Then rent it to local people and then collect the rent yourself. This is also the operation of most international capital. No one will really spend time arranging people to grow food. At most, some capital that is good at agriculture will agree on a good price. period acquisition.

Nowadays, in the agricultural field, Chen Zhiwen is only directly involved in animal husbandry. Breeding cattle and sheep is much easier than farming. He also has channels to sell the dairy products or meat he produces, forming a simple Closed loop. Currently, I am not good at grain trade and have no related industries, so I will not get involved in the short term. However, some small farms have also started some interest planting to satisfy Chen Zhiwen and some Hong Kong rich people. groups, including tea.

"Thank you." Zhou Yang and Dong Youwei said.

"Now that the global stock market crash is coming, the value of various assets has plummeted. It is also a good opportunity for us to intervene now, so this time we will discuss our plans in quantity. According to my speculation, this stock market crash will not last. For a long time, it was completely different from the one in 1929. Although the curves of the two stock market crashes were very similar, the essential reason for the one in 29 was serious overcapacity. This is not the case this time. Electronic products will generate trillions of dollars in demand. The transfer of Western industrial chains to Asia will also continue to ensure long-term low inflation in the European and American markets. It can be said to be a win-win situation, so the market may recover by the first half of next year at most." Chen Zhiwen said.

Before the stock market crash, he couldn't tell anyone about this kind of thing. In fact, most people didn't know whether the stock market crash would happen. Only a few people dared to conclude that it would happen based on their own judgment. , but no one knows when it will occur, and no one knows how long it will last and when it will recover after the stock market crash occurs. Even Warren Buffett waited until half a year to purchase Coca-Cola shares on a large scale. Now the global market is 9 People who are 9 years old are still pessimistic.

"That means we need to launch a large number of acquisitions in a short period of time." Dong Youwei nodded.

"It's true that it's not long-term, but the market is big enough. Our funds are actually just a drop in the bucket." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile. Although tens of billions of Hong Kong dollars are a lot, compared to the global market, even a small part of it , are completely trivial.

"Then what companies do we need to acquire? In the past few years, many of Hong Kong's well-known large real estate companies have been owned by us for 15.99% of the shares. If we acquire more than 16%, Hisense Bank will no longer be able to cooperate with them. Even the previous loans need to be transferred, so the loss will be too great and not cost-effective at all." Dong Youwei said with a frown.

Before Chen Zhiwen acquired Land, his own capital had actually purchased shares of many Hong Kong real estate companies on a large scale. After Land acquired the shares, all these stocks were brought together under Land, and then gradually increased to 15.99%, which did not exceed the threshold. The value is 16%. This is not only to reassure the shareholders of these companies, but also to allow Hisense Bank to cooperate with them in multiple ways to obtain higher benefits to the greatest extent. This is the best choice for the investment model.

"Those big real estate companies don't need to touch them. The Hong Kong government has not changed the banking law this time, so we can't go around it. At most, we can acquire some more secretly, but this doesn't require spending too much money." Chen Zhiwenton After a pause, he said: "Our target this time is actually a large number of ordinary listed companies in Hong Kong. As long as they are among the top 100 companies in Hong Kong in terms of market capitalization, no matter what the situation, there is no need to identify them one by one. We can just buy their stocks directly." Now, there is no need to worry about the upper limit of 16%. We will first acquire the acquisition. After this period of time has passed, we can also ask Hisense Bank to contact them. If we find a high-quality company, then we can also reduce the shares to 16%. This process It’s also profitable.”

With limited funds in the early days, Chen Zhiwen naturally focused on acquiring future top real estate companies such as Cheung Kong Holdings, Henderson Land Development, Sun Hung Kai, and Hang Lung. He basically did not touch other general real estate companies or other types, but as time developed, , I have more and more funds on hand, and I have already invested in the best investments that I can choose. Naturally, I have to lower my goal to the next level. Those who can be among the top 100 listed companies in Hong Kong are actually considered. They are very capable. In the future, the Hong Kong market will gradually solidify. Even if some of these companies may be eliminated, it will only be a small part. When there are no new forces rising, there will be almost no big companies in the old companies. Even if there is a problem, it will not affect the overall situation. You only need all-round investment, which is equivalent to obtaining the listing ratio value of Hong Kong's future Hang Seng Index, and this value is still very high, no less than pure real estate investment, especially Now, with the stock market plummeting, the magnitude will only be higher in the future.

This is the simplest investment model, the safest, and the most important thing is that it saves energy. The time-travelers only know about the famous companies in the future. The hundreds of billions of consortiums in the 21st century are basically famous, but the tens of billions Yes, a few people know it, but these amounts are actually very large. The total investment funds they can accommodate are no less than 100 billion, and they are also very suitable for the current investment opportunity.

"Okay, then just buy the stocks of the top 100 listed companies in Hong Kong directly. Most of them are real estate and a small part are bank insurance. Basically, you will not lose money." Dong Youwei nodded and asked again: " But we have a lot of funds in hand, should we only invest in Hong Kong?”

"That's not necessary. If there are any good projects in China, you can invest in them. This year, bidding for land in Shanghai has also begun. You can go there to test the water first, but the most important thing is In Shenhai City, funds are relatively free, and more shopping malls and office buildings can be built. The demand for these is still huge." Chen Zhiwen added: "In addition, I heard that Shenhai City has established a China Merchants Bank and Ping An Insurance , you have to send someone over to ask if you can accept our investment, this matter is more important than direct investment."

As the reopening period continues, various future high-quality companies have gradually surfaced, just like some companies in Silicon Valley a few years ago. Chen Zhiwen is also paying more attention to these, and occasionally sends people to investigate. Just recently , Shenzhen Shekou Merchants Bureau has opened Ping An Insurance and China Merchants Bank. These two are giants in the future. However, Chen Zhiwen doesn't know if foreign capital can be introduced at this time, so he needs to send someone to inquire.

"Banking and insurance? Okay, I will focus on this matter." Dong Youwei said.

"Okay." Chen Zhiwen nodded, looked at Zhou Jiayang again, and said: "For Hutchison Whampoa, in addition to the port, other funds can be invested in the mining industry, but the iron ore can be left to Rio Tinto. I am right Hutchison Mining's requirement is to focus on entering the copper mining field. In recent years, global copper demand has decreased, and a large number of copper mines have gone bankrupt. There are many such things in Europe and the United States. You go to Europe and the United States, find suitable target acquisitions, and then integrate the entire Industrial chain." (End of chapter)