What's wrong with me being a rich man?

Chapter 131 Financing Planning
Yu Xing admires Xu Xin very much.

Such an investor who can withstand pressure and adhere to impartiality...Looking back now, it was not very authentic for me to start my own business in the Internet marriage and dating industry and then go to her.

Having said that, Mr. Xu has always handled his business impartially and the matter is over.

Things in the future...

Let’s do the B round first and then talk about it later.

Then check the real kung fu. If nothing happens, everyone is happy. If something happens... anyway, someone will be happy.

Yu Xing quickly decided on the relevant strategy in his mind.

After a brief silence, Xu Xin said, "Don't mention the matter of Zhenai.com anymore. It's unnecessary and meaningless. Besides, thanks to you, the Internet dating industry is indeed turning to the real-name system."

NetEase’s dating and marriage system implemented a real-name system and launched a high-profile publicity campaign, successfully grabbing a certain market share from the top websites. This forced the industry to start moving in this direction.

From this perspective, Bai Xiaosheng's bombardment was indeed quite effective.

"Mr. Xu, I don't mean to mention Zhenai.com. It's just that I did encounter some things that confused me. Of course, I did think of your professional handling." Yu Xing considered and said sincerely, "Mr. Xu, I especially admire your professionalism."

Xu Xin originally thought that Yu Xing was a little bit weird again, but now after hearing his sincere tone, he calmed down and came to a very reasonable guess.

The young man was visited like that today, I'm afraid his faith in Taoism is broken, right?
Objectively speaking, encountering a problem → pointing out the problem → solving the problem is the simplest and most efficient way to deal with it.

To be more objective, things will never be simple and will always become complicated.

Thinking of this, Xu Xin couldn't help but smile. After all, Yu Xing just graduated from campus last year.

Her tone became a little gentler: "Boss Yu, I just saw what happened to Bai Xiaosheng today. What exactly happened?"

Yu Xing recounted what happened in vivid detail.

When Xu Xin heard the details and Yu Xing's narration of "a sudden inspiration led him to become a returned overseas doctor", she couldn't help but smile.

After listening to him, she thought for a moment and said, "It may not be as bad as you think. He may really be stopping by to learn about the situation, or he may just be trying to intimidate you to continue the conversation."

Yu Xing said, "Maybe, but I don't want to take chances. What if?"

He didn't know whether Xu Xin really thought so, but it was not surprising. People from different backgrounds naturally had different ideas. Her father was the chairman of a large group, so naturally the things she was exposed to since childhood were different.

Perhaps it was because of this difference that Xu Xin missed out on Huang Zheng and Pinduoduo, as well as Douyin.

But she felt that missing out on Douyin was understandable as it was a content company, but she was a little bothered by missing out on Pinduoduo because she had been very successful in investing in the e-commerce sector and felt that the decision was within her capabilities.

Because of this missed opportunity, Xu Xin and his team put aside the usual phone calls and face-to-face interviews and made a special trip to the countryside to actually live in other people's homes. They selected different families in cities, towns, and villages and experienced life at the grassroots level firsthand.

Then, she was "very shocked".

And, understand what "cheap happiness" is.

However, Xu Xin was not concerned about Yu Xing's caution. After thinking for a while, she gave some advice: "Mr. Yu, no matter what, the website will probably still be able to increase its users this time, but being too rigid will only lead to failure."

"I'm not saying that you must change your original intention, or that you must shake the mechanism of Bai Xiaosheng."

"I just think that you lack communication with the B-side. Whether you want to form a voice channel for ordinary users or target counterfeit and shoddy products, your communication efficiency will naturally be higher when your scale is larger."

"Just like Tang Jun, he is very famous. He would get applause for anything he said in that position, but no one would respond if you said the same thing. If Tang Jun was doing what you are doing now, I don't think anyone would dare to do that."

Yu Xing replied instantly: "Yes."

"I don't have to...ah?" Xu Xin was stunned, "Uh, Mr. Yu, you..."

She didn't expect Yu Xing's answer to be so straightforward.

"I don't have to go against you. I think what you said makes sense. Bai Xiaosheng will focus on advertising and the Internet industry for some time to come." Yu Xing said as a matter of course, "I think we are actually ahead of Zhichang.com in all aspects. As long as we develop steadily and survive, our competitors will have no chance to catch up."

"We will make some adjustments within the site this time. In the future, if it is not a particularly important and confirmed news, we will not use the official pinning function, but will display it in the natural popularity ranking."

"The website will also invite companies to communicate, and if there are questions from workplace users, we will give priority to matching and communication."

"According to the current situation, our mid-year goal is to reach 50 users, because the effect of advertising penetration will continue to be optimized. In addition, existing users will also have the effect of fission and drainage. I am still optimistic about this goal."

"In the second half of the year, the company will try to generate revenue and conduct more commercial operations."

Yu Xing talked freely about the company's plans.

Seeing that there was no response from the other party, he further explained the "50" goal. The effect of Fenzhong Media was increasing step by step, and according to observations over the past month, the feedback from user invitations was also good.

三月份综合来看，日平均涨幅或能维持在2000以上，也就意味着有希望总数突破30万，剩下4、5、6三个月的时间再做20万用户……

There will probably be some "real kung fu" traffic later, so there shouldn't be any problem.

Listening to the confident description from the other end of the phone, Xu Xin became more clear about what Yu Xing wanted to promote now.

After the voice on the phone came to an end, she smiled and said, "Mr. Yu, you suddenly told me so much, and also released the user numbers that you had kept secret before. Do you want to get the B round of funding in the near future?"

Startups always develop very quickly, and the versions and plans we hear now are different from those we heard years ago.

"Yes, Mr. Xu." Yu Xing admitted this. "Not only do we want to get it, but we also want to get it as soon as possible. If Capital Today is not happy enough, we will contact other institutions as soon as possible."

Xu Xin was not angry.

If you were still considering the risks and the backup plan for this track before, but now you know Bai Xiaosheng's leading advantage and Yu Xing's smart adjustments, you really don't have to consider the backup plan anymore.

She pondered for a while, made up her mind, and said, "Then let's talk."

Yu Xing perked up and sought advice: "Mr. Xu, among the other agencies we contacted before, which one do you think is more suitable?"

"Capital Today is enough." Xu Xin showed his determination after making the decision, "How much money do you need?" "We hope to reach cooperation with 2-3 institutions in this round." Yu Xing explained, "If the revenue development in the second half of the year is good, we will have another round of financing next year, but we hope that this round will lay the foundation for that round."

Xu Xin thought for a while and tried to ask: "Redwood also looks good on you, don't you consider Redwood?"

"We don't like the relationship between Sequoia and Ctrip." Yu Xing used the same reason as last time, "Mr. Xu, among the four companies, IDG, JD Capital, Matrix Partners, and Qiming, which two do you think are more suitable for us? If we can't reach an agreement, we will consider contacting new institutions. I believe everyone can realize the significance of our current user scale."

When there was no scale, Yu Xing could only look for investment. Now that it has a certain scale, he can switch over.

"Who is IDG contacting you?" Xu Xin's mind was constantly turning over thoughts, including about Bai Xiaosheng's current situation and the relationship between Today Capital and them.

Yu Xing replied: "It's Zhang Suyang."

"He's one of the seven elders of IDG. It seems they are quite interested." Xu Xin said with a smile, "Come to think of it, it was Zhang Suyang who negotiated with IDG to invest in Ctrip."

Yu Xing was surprised: "Seventh Elder?"

"Sometimes we call them that because they are the seven partners who formed the IDG localization team with Xiong Xiaoge," Xu Xin said. "If I were you, I would definitely be willing to talk more with IDG. As for the rest, Qiming was founded not long ago, but it's not bad either, and they are in Shanghai."

Yu Xing didn't know about these things, but he knew Xu Xin to some extent. He said decisively, "Okay, then we will talk to IDG and Qiming. I hope to get more than $1000 million in funding this round to support the company's rapid development."

Xu Xin repeated the amount of funds in his mind, and then asked: "How many shares are you selling?"

Yu Xing replied: “20%.”

Xu Xin frowned: "This valuation is a bit high. Either we give in on the shares, or... Actually, we can wait a while. When we really reach 50 users, maybe we can get more funds."

She knew that Bai Xiaosheng's valuation in the last round was 1000 million US dollars, but in fact, that was because Bai Xiaosheng used a small number of shares to prop up this number.

Now, even though the number of users has grown beyond imagination, valuation still needs to be based on a balance between reality and the future.

"Mr. Xu, we have signed a six-month contract with Fenzhong for 456 million. As long as the website does not go bankrupt, this amount of traffic will be enough to support our goal of reaching 50 users." Yu Xing said seriously, "With the money from the B round, we hope to double the advertising investment within the next 12 months. In other words, the effect of this 1000 million US dollars is aimed at 300 million users."

As advertising investment increases, user growth will accelerate. At the same time, more and more user groups and produced content will further attract the target group to join, which is a snowball growth.

Yu Xing had previously determined that the advertising strategy would be mainly offline. Now, apart from Fenzhong Media, more advertisements in subways, buses and other locations have not yet been installed, and these are very expensive.

The amount he called out was calculated, and he will also have to generate self-generated revenue from website development in the next 12 months.

Xu Xin thought for a long time this time.

Then, she said, "Let's talk about it. Your conversion effect is very good, but it is difficult for IDG and Qiming to give such a valuation. Fundraising this year is more difficult than in previous years, and investment in the industry is relatively tight."

"As long as Mr. Xu is willing to support me, I will feel at ease." Yu Xing then turned the subject around, "If it really doesn't work, we don't need IDG and Qiming. Anyway, Capital Today has enough money, so one company is enough."

This is what Xu Xin said just now.

Xu Xin sneered: "We can talk about money, but that means we can also talk about shares. If everything goes according to your will, what else can we talk about?"

"We can talk about it, but this money is indeed for the company's financial planning, not for my personal spending. I still ride an electric bike." Yu Xing did not insist, "I hope the company has money to develop, and then we can make more money together, instead of haggling over it now."

"Let's talk about it." Xu Xin pondered, "Write a new letter of intent, and let's talk about your prospects together."

Yu Xing confirmed a time: "Then it will be next Friday. I will discuss the time with IDG and Qiming and we will also discuss it at Capital Today."

Xu Xin agreed.

She did not end the conversation, but asked: "Mr. Yu, I personally suggest that you still need to do some company and image management. If you are willing, there is a 'Nongshang Cup' young economic figure selection in Shanghai. You can try it."

"Me?" Yu Xing was a little surprised. "Agricultural Business Cup? Organized by the bank?"

"It is sponsored by the Shanghai Rural Commercial Bank and hosted by the city's Young Entrepreneurs Association, Wenhui Daily, China Business News, and Shanghai Hotline," Xu Xin said. "If you can get the award, you can show your face in front of the leaders. The leaders in Shanghai are all very good."

Yu Xing said at this time: "Boss Xu, of course I am willing. I have another idea. Can you help me with some advice? After Bai Xiaosheng has accumulated enough users, we will start a recruitment business. If I have enough money, I want to sponsor a TV station. It would be best if the money can be vertically segmented. I can do a job-hunting program with the boss sitting on it, and then let job seekers appear on stage and select each other. How do you think?"

How can Bai Xiaosheng maximize his money?

Yu Xing still thought of the "vertical" idea, and then he noticed that there were no job-hunting programs on the market. However, "If You Are the One" was once very popular, and both company promotion and personal image had the opportunity to develop wildly.

Xu Xin was a little confused after hearing this. After thinking for a while, she said, "Please write it all in the letter of intent. I'll ask someone about this next week."

"Then I'll leave it to you." Yu Xing was sweating on his forehead after saying this. "Mr. Xu, thank you. See you next Friday."

"Wait." Xu Xin asked at last, "I see you rarely reveal the company's plan in full. What is your mental journey today?"

All she had heard before were objective descriptions of the scene, and she was curious about what he was thinking.

"Mental journey?" Yu Xing paused, "Of course, I'm not strong enough yet, I have to take it step by step..."

Xu Xin listened for a while, but didn't hear anything further, so he asked, "What are you doing step by step?"

Yu Xing sighed sincerely: "Make friends with everyone."
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(This section is free. You may not be familiar with Maimai. Here are some reference data on its development so that you can have a general impression.)

2013年10月成立，次年1月拥有5万用户，3月A轮20%股份融资500万美元。

2014年8月，80万用户，B轮20%股份融资2000万美元。

In October 2014, there were 10 million users and 120 daily active users.

In October 2015, there were 4 million users and 500 daily active users.

In October 2016, there were 8 million users and 2000 daily active users.

In November 2017, it had 11 million users, raised US$3000 million in its Series C funding round, and was valued at nearly US$7500 billion.

In August 2018, the company raised US$8 million in its Series D round of financing, but its valuation was not disclosed.

(End of this chapter)