Reborn Tech Maniac

Chapter 628
"Making a fortune in silence" is a characteristic of the Kadoorie family. In the 18th century, they moved from Baghdad, the capital of Iraq, to ​​Mumbai, India. Later, they followed the Sassoon family in Shanghai and successfully established their own business kingdom. The generation of Michael Kadoorie is already the third generation.

His old father, the 86-year-old second-generation head of the Kadoorie family, Lawrence Kadoorie, is still directing the operation of this huge business machine in good spirits.

The Kadoorie family has two main assets, one is the CLP Power that invested in the Daya Bay Nuclear Power Plant, and the other is Xiangjiang Shanghai_Shanghai Hotel Co., Ltd. If it is directly referred to by its "Peninsula Hotel" brand, it may be more widely known .The Xiangjiang Peninsula Hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon is the flagship hotel.

In the original time and space, people often only knew Li Bancheng, who was ranked first in Xiangjiang, but in fact, Kadoorie, a Jewish family, was also one of the top ten powerful factions in Xiangjiang.

In order to expand its "power kingdom", the Kadoorie family's CLP Power is different from other large companies in Xiangjiang. When others are still in the shadow of the uncertain future of Xiangjiang, it has already actively entered the mainland, and it is on par with Nanyue Province. Network power supply is the first major achievement.

After tasting the sweetness of going north, CLP Power invested a lot in the Daya Bay nuclear power plant project. The participation of Heung Kong Electric was mainly to make up for the gap in clean energy, and to help Zheru Heung Kong’s computer business enter the field of power management systems at a deeper level. Heung Kong The protagonist here is CLP Power, which can also be seen from the shareholding ratio.

As the construction of the Daya Bay nuclear power plant project was delayed again and again due to human factors on the Xiangjiang side, and the start of construction was nowhere in sight, the Kadoorie family obviously felt the pressure on cash flow.In the original time and space, the Peninsula Hotel was attacked by speculators in the stock market. This factor was a big foreshadowing.

Therefore, Michael Kadoorie desperately hoped that Tang Huan would use his influence as the "King of Xiangjiang" to promote the progress of the Daya Bay nuclear power plant project, so as to reduce the cash flow pressure of his family; decision.

Seeing Tang Huan casually throwing out [-] million US dollars as soon as his upper lip touched his lower lip, Michael Kadoorie, who was troubled by the family's cash flow, was very depressed. If he had [-] million US dollars in cash now, he would You can slowly promote the progress of the Daya Bay Nuclear Power Plant project with a calm mind.

Looking at Michael Kadoorie who was in a state of aphasia, Tang Huan said very frankly: "The human heart is the most unpredictable thing. It may be harvested smoothly and quickly, or it may abandon you without mercy. It's a risk."

Michael Kadoorie moved his lips, and was about to say, "You have also invested in the Daya Bay Nuclear Power Plant Project", but then swallowed it back, because he found it meaningless.Tang Huanneng usually spends [-] million U.S. dollars to buy nuclear protection materials that will almost never be used. Naturally, he can also maintain a state of grace in the construction progress of the Daya Bay Nuclear Power Plant project.

But having said that, although Tang Huan refused to come forward, he still played a role from the side. Michael Kadoorie had no choice but to find fault, and he did not dare to find fault. He could only hold his nose and follow the words of the richest man. , talk about the scene.

Tang Huan's eyes were so sharp, he could see the other party's insincere words, so he said to the partner from the bottom of his heart: "I am still very optimistic about the future of the Daya Bay Nuclear Power Plant, and I naturally hope that it can produce returns as soon as possible. If the Kadoorie family If there is financial pressure, I can provide financial assistance, no interest is required, anyway, everyone knows that the shares of the Daya Bay Nuclear Power Plant are the best collateral.”

Speaking of this, Tang Huan laughed, "Of course, I want to solemnly declare here that Xiangjiang Electric has no intention of replacing CLP's position as the second largest shareholder in the Daya Bay nuclear power plant project. After all, CLP's power supply network covers most of Xiangjiang. region, there is no need for Xiangjiang Electric to grab this piece of cake that is destined not to be fully digested.”

Tang Huan's straightforward style made Michael Kadoorie's sense of trust always stable.Therefore, when he heard the proposal offered by the other party, his eyes lit up, and he subconsciously asked: "Mr. Tang is not comforting me, are you really willing to borrow money without interest?"

"We are friends. Compared with this relationship, that little interest is really vulgar. Of course, you can't borrow money beyond my ability." After Tang Huan showed off his wit, he showed his sharpness inadvertently, "You should know that my cash flow has always been healthy, and I don't even need to talk to HSBC."

Hearing this, Michael Kadoorie couldn't help being awe-inspiring, because Tang Huan's words were true, and the wealth of the richest man was amazing.

During the war between Qinhe and Jardine, HSBC and Tang Huan turned against each other; when Qinhe ate Jardine, the war ended, everything was settled, and after the unchangeable, the two sides tried to make up for the rift, such as HSBC threw out the Jardine shares, Qinhe maintained Jardine's original settlement account in HSBC and other good measures.

But sometimes, once the sense of trust is lost, it is difficult to restore. The most obvious sign is that HSBC has always refused to allow former Jardine executives like Niu Bijian to rejoin the HSBC board of directors.

Back and forth, the suspicions and rifts between the two sides grew bigger and bigger, until this year Qinhe and the first department almost cleaned up all business dealings with HSBC, including the salary accounts of British employees.

In Xiangjiang, almost no one can completely bypass the existence of HSBC, unless he is a great fairy, who does not have the worldly needs of eating, drinking, and sleeping.

But Tang Huan became the exception. Although he did not become a fairy, he was a god of wealth. When the whole system was established, there would be so many ways to get money.

Taking loans as an example, the United States and Japan are Tang Huan's most important sources of large amounts of funds, especially the latter's yen loan interest rates are world-renowned for being low.At the same time, the current stage is also the golden age for the banking circles of the United States and Japan to expand their business in Hong Kong.

And this is only the source of funds on the surface, not counting Tang Huan's secret speculation income.

Therefore, Tang Huan is qualified and capable to act regardless of HSBC's winks - I am not used to you, and I still have a lot of funds to support the operation and expansion.

There are as many banks in Hong Kong as there are crucian carp crossing the river, and even the local services of Chinese-funded banks are more considerate and thoughtful than HSBC, while the overseas fund transfer service is happily taken over by Standard Chartered Bank, and there are many other international banks to supplement.

With Tang Huan's IT solution assistance in management, Qinhe's business has not been affected, but is full of vitality.

As for HSBC at the present stage, it is essentially a local rich man with its headquarters in Xiangjiang. Although it has tried many times to expand internationally, it has always been ineffective. After 50.00% of the shares of Ocean Bank, the losses were serious, and it was like knocking out teeth and swallowing them in the stomach.

The reason why HSBC has repeatedly encountered obstacles on the road to internationalization is that although it is very successful in business, its system is still at the level of the British corporate regulations more than 100 years ago, which does not meet the standards of modern companies. The transparency of information is low, and even the most concerned data - the amount of internal reserves, is unknown to outsiders.

In addition, there is no way to accurately assess the extent to which HSBC's profitability benefits from Hong Kong's quasi-central bank status.

This particularity is not just for fun. As we all know, every economic system needs to conduct various settlements at night after the end of daytime operations; although Xiangjiang has three note-issuing banks-HSBC, Standard Chartered, and Bank of China, the daily settlement At that time, the funds flowed to the HSBC account.

In other words, HSBC counts money when they sleep with their eyes closed.It and Hang Seng Bank, which is controlled by itself, have previously occupied 6% of the retail market of Xiangjiang Bank.

Relying on this monopoly advantage, HSBC Bank, which is seeking a breakthrough in internationalization, can survive even if it loses a lot of blood and tears at Ocean Bank of the United States.

The proud and conceited HSBC takes it for granted that even if it loses the business of Qinhe, the largest consortium in Hong Kong, even if there is some loss, the amount is not necessarily as terrible as that of Ocean Bank of the United States, which has been dragged down by the Latin American sovereign debt crisis.

But after He Qinhe was really a stranger, HSBC was still hit hard.It can rely on the family background of the local rich man, and it doesn't care about losing a few business deals, but the loss of reputation is a bit unbearable.

Although the bankruptcy of Xiangjiang Bank is still going on, but the number is still large, and it is this kind of crisis that makes the original fierce competition to a higher level. Big customers, if you say kick it, you will kick it, do you think you are better than the richest man, and you will receive thoughtful service?"

When such bad-mouthing arguments became a common perception that spread more and more widely, HSBC finally realized what it had missed, so it tried to make up for it, but it couldn't find a way, and even HSBC's huge sum of money in the United States I don't know when the news of the loss started to spread.

Shen Bi, chairman of HSBC, who intends to retire with merit next year, is devastated.

In particular, the completion of the fourth-generation Xiangjiang HSBC head office building would have become a symbol of glory during his time in charge of HSBC; but no matter how you look at it now, there is a bit of irony in it.

The third-generation Xiangjiang HSBC head office building, which belongs to the Chicago School of Design, is 70 meters high and has 13 floors. It was opened in 1935. It was the largest building in the Far East at that time, and it was said to be the first air-conditioned building in Xiangjiang. things.So much so that after the Japanese army captured Xiangjiang in 1942, it was used as the headquarters of the "government".

After the end of World War II, with the rapid economic development and the rapid increase in business, the third-generation HSBC head office building was obviously not enough for use, and reconstruction was imperative.

Shen Bi is very concerned about this, and regards it as his own political achievements and image projects. He specially invited Norman Foster, a representative of high-tech architects and a master in the British construction industry, as the fourth generation Xiangjiang HSBC Headquarters Building was designed.This man is also the designer of Xiangjiang International Airport, which was opened in 1998 in the original time and space.

The fourth-generation Hong Kong HSBC head office building, which was rebuilt in July 1981 and completed on May 7 this year, is 1985 meters high, with 5 floors and 20 basements, and used 180 square meters. tons of steel, and 46 tons of aluminum.And the fittings used in its construction were prefabricated for the most part – the structural steel was made in the UK; the glass, aluminum shell and flooring were made in the US; and the service components were made in Japan.

Therefore, the cost of rebuilding the fourth-generation HSBC head office building is astonishing, as high as 52 billion Hong Kong dollars. It is the most expensive building in the world at this stage, and the first building costing 10 billion US dollars.

Shen Bi wanted to use these auras of real money to draw a perfect symbol for his career, but the cost of 10 billion US dollars, compared with the various news of poor management, suddenly became A great irony.

During the construction of the fourth-generation Hong Kong HSBC head office building, HSBC temporarily moved to the Aon Chinese Bank, which is also located in Central.Although the fourth-generation Hong Kong HSBC head office building has been completed, it is impossible to move in immediately, and there are still many trivial things to prepare.

Shen Bi took a special look at the process of HSBC's famous pair of bronze lions being relocated in front of the main gate.Gein's two big ornaments are not simple, but have rich historical connotations.

When the third-generation Xiangjiang HSBC head office building was opened in 1935, HSBC’s strongholds in China were everywhere, and Shanghai HSBC Bank naturally became the leader among them, so that the practice of placing two bronze lions in front of the door was also adopted by Xiangjiang. HSBC learned to go.

It directly copied the two bronze lions placed in front of the Shanghai HSBC Bank, and then placed them in front of its own gate, and named it: the one that opened its mouth and roared was called "Stephen"—"Stephen" "Fen" comes from Stephen, the general manager of Xiangjiang HSBC Head Office, who proposed the suggestion of copying the copper lion; — Shidi's name.

When the Japanese army captured Xiangjiang in 1942, due to the shortage of supplies, these bronze lions, together with the bronze statues of Queen Victoria and Hongkong and Hongkong and Hongkong Bank's Taipan Jackson, were transported to Yokohama, Japan, and were prepared to be returned to the furnace to take copper as military materials.

After Japan surrendered in 1945, the two bronze lions in Xiangjiang were found by the U.S. military in the wharf warehouse, and MacArthur ordered them to be transported back to Xiangjiang.

It is definitely a high-end and stylish thing for an enterprise to own such cultural relics that have gone through wind and rain. That's why Shen Bi paid so much attention to it, but in the end he was right here at the gate, and was left speechless by reporters' questions.

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(End of this chapter)