The Tyrant Billionaire

HSBC’s shareholders were also pessimistic about the situation in the East, which is why they wanted to sell some shares to mitigate the risk.

Some shareholders were even considering selling all their shares.

For capitalists, it’s instinct to jump into profitable industries and escape when danger looms.

Few would hold onto their investments for the sake of so called beliefs, stubbornly sticking around when the risk is high. That’s not the mindset of a competent capitalist.

Now that David Rockefeller had pinpointed HSBC’s major problems, this deal seemed increasingly difficult to secure.

"So, Mr. Rockefeller, what is your suggestion?" David Sassoon asked.

"If you’re looking for partners, you need to offer a sincere price. I had my economists evaluate HSBC’s worth, and right now, it’s probably only valued at $150 million," David Rockefeller replied, slashing more than half of the original price with one swift cut.

Hearing this, David Sassoon was both pleased and dismayed. On the one hand, it showed that Rockefeller was still interested in the deal, at least not outright rejecting it. On the other hand, the price was far too low.

"Mr. Rockefeller, HSBC has over 3 million customers, holds $580 million in deposits, and this year alone made $12 million in profits. Its profitability exceeds that of many large banks," David Sassoon explained.

"Risk and the future," David countered.

"Mr. Sassoon, we both know this isn’t a typical investment; it’s more like a high stakes gamble. If it fails, all the investment will vanish."

"For such a risky investment, any banker would be extremely cautious. Only if the potential returns far outweigh the risks would someone be willing to make such an investment. I imagine this is the real reason HSBC is selling shares, isn’t it?"

David stopped dancing around the issue and cut straight to the heart of the matter.

The negotiation ended at this point. Both sides were dissatisfied with the other’s price, but neither rejected the deal outright. The talks were merely paused.

Negotiating a business deal is like playing a game of chess.

It all depends on how the next moves are made.

On the other side,

Hardy summoned the head of the Global Times London office.

He gave detailed instructions, ordering them to send someone to Hong Kong to personally relay Hardy’s plans.

They acted together.

At the same time, Hardy sent a telegram to the U.S. headquarters of Global, asking them to coordinate with Hong Kong and Britain.

He then called for Henry to bring his intelligence team to Britain, working alongside the Global Times London office to conduct an in depth investigation into HSBC.

A few days later,

After extensive cooperation,

Detailed information about HSBC was laid out in front of Hardy and David Rockefeller.

HSBC was founded in 1865, with shareholders including the British Shipping Company, Sassoon & Co., Jardine Matheson, Swire, and other notable Hong Kong businesses.

Over the past century, there had been changes, and now HSBC had 18 shareholders, with Sassoon holding 11.3% and the British Shipping Company holding 7.5%. Major Hong Kong trading companies like Jardine and Swire were also shareholders.

There were also some British and Indian businessmen involved.

HSBC’s current president, A.H. Saunders, was a legendary financier. Hardy knew that Saunders would step down in the 1970s after leading HSBC out of its troubles and turning it into the largest bank in Hong Kong and Southeast Asia.

HSBC’s headquarters was located in Hong Kong, housed in a building reminiscent of the White House. It operated 46 branches across various Asian countries, including China, the Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, and India.

However, during World War II, HSBC suffered a devastating blow. Its headquarters in Hong Kong, along with branches in Southeast Asia, were confiscated by the Japanese. All assets were seized, and the bank was forced to shut down, leading to significant losses for HSBC.

After Japan’s surrender, HSBC reclaimed its branches. The family shareholders reinvested funds to resume operations, but in just a few short years, HSBC had yet to return to its pre-war size.

Moreover, after such a brutal war, the people of East Asia were impoverished. Who had money to deposit in banks? Banking operations were extremely difficult.

HSBC’s largest market, China, was still at war. Several major battles had been fought, and both sides of the civil war were treating businessmen in China as lambs to be slaughtered, especially banks; they were destroying and robbing their branches every now and then. HSBC had closed most of its Chinese branches, and whether the remaining ones could survive was uncertain.

David Sassoon had mentioned the surge in deposits at HSBC Hong Kong last year and the $10 million in profits. The truth, however, was that other bank branches had withdrawn their funds to Hong Kong, and all of HSBC’s annual profits were counted under Hong Kong operations, while the losses were chalked up to branch expenses. This created an illusion of profitability.

In reality, it was a kind of deception, likely to sell the shares at a higher price.

Looking at the intelligence report, David Rockefeller couldn’t help but admire Hardy’s capabilities, having obtained such detailed information in such a short time.

Though the Rockefeller family could have acquired the same data, it wouldn’t have been nearly as fast.

Speed is an advantage.

Having the information meant having the upper hand.

This showed why Hardy was so successful.

"Looking at this data, my offer of $150 million might even be too high. While HSBC is currently worth that amount, the risk factor is enormous. If Hong Kong falls, and HSBC loses its main market, its value will plummet."

After finishing, David looked at Hardy and asked,

"Hardy, with such high risks, why do you still want to invest?"

"Do you believe the U.S. will send troops to destroy the Communist Party?"

David was genuinely curious about Hardy’s reasoning. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Hardy shook his head.

"The U.S. will definitely not send troops. That’s an unchangeable fact. The current president of China had already received huge amounts of aid from the U.S. in the form of weapons and money, and politically, he had such an advantage early on but wasted those resources and couldn’t secure victory when the Communist Party was at its weakest.

Now that the Soviet Union is starting to support the Communist Party, the U.S. Congress will definitely refuse to continue supporting a losing war. You should have already noticed the U.S. has already shifted almost all of its foreign aid buggets to Europe."