The Red Era: Living in Seclusion in a Siheyuan as a Boss

Chapter 787 "Jingxi Capital"!!!
Duan Yongping's investment in "JD Home Appliances" was not a spur-of-the-moment decision.

He personally visited all of JD Appliances' warehouses and stores and found that Liu Qiangdong had a very forward-thinking business concept.

"The future of e-commerce lies in the supply chain and logistics, and JD has already laid a solid foundation for e-commerce." On Duan Yongping's advice, Liu Qiangdong began to shift his focus to building his own e-commerce platform.

One year later, "JD Mall" was officially launched.

Duan Yongping, representing "Jingxi Capital," not only provided financial support to "JD.com," but also helped them attract technical talent.

He often said, "Investment is not just about giving money, but also about giving resources."

With Duan Yongping's help, "JD Mall" later reached a strategic partnership with Tencent, gaining access to valuable traffic.

By 2006, JD Mall's annual sales had exceeded 100 billion yuan, making it a leading B2C e-commerce company in China.

With the booming development of the domestic Internet after the millennium, "Jingxi Capital" has continuously expanded its investment portfolio under the leadership of outstanding partners such as Duan Yongping.

At Duan Yongping's suggestion, "Jingxi Capital" also made a major investment in a Hangzhou-based company called "Taobao".

At the beginning of the millennium, "Jingxi Capital" led the Series B financing of "Ali".

Jingxi Capital participated in several subsequent rounds of financing for "Ali". After the Series C financing, Jingxi Capital held a 24.9% stake, becoming the largest shareholder of "Ali".

Liu's Financial Investment Group holds 20.6% of the shares, making it the second largest shareholder, while SoftBank Group holds 12.3%, making it the fourth largest shareholder.

Duan Yongping was deeply impressed by founder Ma Feiyun's vision and the team's execution.

“This team has the ambition and ability to change the industry,” Duan Yongping wrote in his investment memo.

Beyond investing, Duan Yongping always maintains a learner's mindset.

He takes time each week to read industry reports compiled within the group and to exchange ideas with young entrepreneurs.

“The market is always changing,” Duan Yong said to his team. “We must remain sensitive to new things.”

It was this open-mindedness that enabled him to decisively buy up a batch of high-quality technology companies when the financial crisis hit 2 years later, bringing substantial returns to "Jingxi Capital".

"Jingxi Capital" began to emerge in the 1980s and became a leader in the domestic financial field, thanks to the joint efforts of many outstanding partners and employees like Duan Yongping.

After the Beijing Olympics, Duan Yongping, with his keen business acumen, turned his attention to the emerging mobile internet sector.

He noticed that the widespread adoption of smartphones was reshaping people's lifestyles, so he decisively invested in mobile payment and social platforms.

During a visit to Silicon Valley, he met Zhang Xiaolong, who was starting his own business, and was impressed by his idea of ​​"making communication simpler".

After in-depth discussions, Jingxi Capital led the Series A funding round for Weixin and helped it build a complete commercialization system.

At the same time, Duan Yongping began to build the "Jingxi System" ecosystem.

He facilitated a strategic partnership between JD Mall and Ali, enabling the complementarity of their supply chains and platforms; he also promoted the deep integration of WeChat and Taobao, creating a new model of social e-commerce.

This synergistic effect of the ecosystem quickly became apparent, and the performance of each company showed exponential growth.

Later, due to his outstanding performance, Duan Yongping was elected as the rotating CEO of "Jingxi Capital".

At an internal meeting, Duan Yongping proposed a "three-pronged strategy": e-commerce, finance, and social networking, which empower each other to form a closed loop.

As its investment portfolio expands, "Jingxi Capital" has begun to focus on building its corporate culture.

The company established the "Jingxi Financial Academy," which regularly invites industry leaders to give lectures; and created an "Innovation Fund" to encourage employees to start their own businesses.

According to Duan Yongping, the power of capital lies not only in obtaining returns, but also in driving industry progress and creating social value.

This foresight has enabled "Jingxi Capital" to maintain its leading edge in the fierce competition of the capital market.

Duan Yongping is not only a great investor, but also very passionate about philanthropy.

He donated a large amount of money on behalf of "Jingxi Capital" for education, poverty alleviation, medical care and other fields.

Someone asked Duan Yongping, "Why are you so passionate about charity?"

He smiled and said, "I think the greatest happiness in life is being able to help others."

Duan Yongping also often says, "I don't care what others think of me, I only care about how many people I can help."

His good deeds have touched countless people and established him as a "warm-hearted investor" in the public eye.

"Jingxi Capital" and "Liu's Financial Investment Group" have a great reputation both at home and abroad, and are like a breath of fresh air in the capital field.

These two financial giants, which began to rise in the early 1980s, have also cultivated generations of financial talents for the financial sector of Xia Kingdom.

Lu Wenqi, a native of old Beijing, was one of them.

During the coldest days of winter in Yanjing, the lowest temperature approaches minus ten degrees Celsius.

At Terminal 3 of Beijing Capital International Airport, 33-year-old Lu Wenqi came out of the arrival hall, hurried upstairs into a clothing store, bought a cashmere sweater and put it on to ward off the cold wind.

He had just flown in from his office in the south on a rushed business trip, without even having time to go home to get his clothes.

Lu Wenqi serves as the chief macro analyst in the securities department of the Shanghai branch of "Jingxi Capital".

He graduated with a PhD in Economics from one of the top four universities in China and has been working in the field for five years.

Working at a prestigious financial group like "Jingxi Capital" is highly competitive, with employees vying fiercely for positions.

After being promoted from a regular researcher to chief macro analyst, Lu Wenqi travels to three different cities on average every week.

I haven't had a weekend in more than half a year, let alone taken a year-end holiday.

Lu Wenqi sets her alarm for 6 a.m. every day. From the moment she opens her eyes until she goes to bed late at night, her schedule is filled with meetings, roadshows, visits, report revisions, customer inquiries, and work-related QQ messages.

Every day is the same, over and over again.

“I’m working myself to the bone, and I might just die one day,” Lu Wenqi told the reporter who interviewed him. He said he was not in good health and rarely went to the gym. “I’d rather catch up on sleep than go to the gym.” His diligence was very focused on becoming the chief economist of the branch office in the shortest possible time.

In recent years, two listed securities firms have made promises to Lu Wenqi, saying they would keep the position for him, "but promises are not credible, and he needs to make an impact."

On average in the industry, reaching the top position within five years is considered a relatively fast pace.

"If you can't make an impact after seven or eight years in the industry, it's basically impossible to make one later." Lu Wenqi saw some of his senior colleagues end up unknown in the research field, which made him feel a great sense of urgency.

He had to fill his days and nights with work in exchange for a chance at success.

Lu Wenqi walked out of the airport. The cold wind was biting, and he wrapped his newly bought cashmere sweater tighter around himself.

The screen of my Huawei Mate 2 phone lit up, displaying more than a dozen unread messages—inquiries from clients, reports from the team, and urgent meeting notices from my boss.

He took a deep breath, flagged down a taxi on the roadside, and headed straight for the headquarters of "Jingxi Capital" in Liujiazhuang High-tech Development Zone.

In the car, Lu Wenqi opened her laptop and quickly browsed the latest macroeconomic data.

Outside the window, the night view of Yanjing flashed by, and neon lights cast dappled shadows on the car window.

The driver glanced at him through the rearview mirror and couldn't help but ask, "Are you still working so late?"

Lu Wenqi smiled without looking up: "I'm used to it."

It was late at night when I arrived at the head office, but the office on the 28th floor was still brightly lit. Pushing open the door to the conference room, I found several colleagues who had arrived early engaged in a heated discussion about the next day's investment strategy.

Upon seeing Lu Wenqi, some former colleagues immediately surrounded him: "Old Lu, America's newly released CPI data exceeded expectations, causing significant market volatility. We are currently adjusting the model parameters."

Lu Wenqi gave a brief greeting to everyone, put down her briefcase, and quickly got to work: "Show me the data. Also, contact my colleagues in the New York branch; I need their firsthand observations."

At three in the morning, Lu Wenqi finally closed her LinkSense notebook computer.

Standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, he gazed at the sleeping city, his thoughts racing.

It feels like just yesterday that I was a greenhorn when I first joined the company five years ago, but now I have taken on the heavy responsibility of research for the entire branch.

My phone vibrated; it was a message from my mother: "Son, remember to eat breakfast."

Lu Wenqi's eyes welled up slightly as she replied, "Mom, I'm fine. You should get some rest."

The next morning, Lu Wenqi reappeared at the morning meeting.

After he finished analyzing the market trends in a hoarse voice, he suddenly received a call from Duan Yongping's assistant: "Mr. Duan would like to invite you to lunch."

In the restaurant on the top floor of the group's building, Duan Yongping personally poured him a cup of tea: "Xiao Lu, your recent research report on the digital economy is very insightful."

Sunlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows, bathing the two men in its warmth. Duan Yongping's gaze was deep and gentle: "Would you be interested in coming to headquarters to serve as the chief economic analyst?"

Lu Wenqi gripped the teacup tightly; he knew this might be the opportunity he had been waiting for.

According to statistics from the China Securities Association, the number of research personnel in domestic securities firms was 2000 last year, an increase of more than 200 compared to the previous year.

More than 600 people have 5 years or more of work experience, accounting for 37.78% of the total. 200 people have a doctoral degree or above.

There are fewer than 20 chief economist positions across all domestic securities firms.

There are many securities research institutes in China, and there is no uniformity in their job positions.

Generally speaking, job titles related to macroeconomic research include macroeconomic researcher, chief macroeconomist, and chief economist.

The Chief Macro Analyst position is created at the research institute level, while the Chief Economist position is created at the corporate level.

The chief economist speaks on behalf of the company, which requires not only solid research capabilities but also the ability to communicate with the market and the media.

Their salaries are also dozens of times higher than those of ordinary researchers.

Lu Wenqi was only around 33 years old when she became the chief economic analyst of the head office, a time when she was in the prime of her life.

Meanwhile, 2300 kilometers away in Hong Kong, at six o'clock in the morning, Du Wenming walked into the office of "Liu's Overseas Financial Investment Group" in Tsim Sha Tsui and began his day's work.

He saw through the huge glass window that, through the gaps in the mountains across the sea, a pale red dawn was beginning to emerge, dispelling the darkness of the sky.

Du Wenming has just completed a macroeconomic report.

On this day, following the schedule of morning meetings in different time zones around the world, he will give a report to his colleagues worldwide.

At 7:00 AM Beijing time, he will explain the report to the Asian sales team at the morning meeting in the Asian region (including Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, and Tianjin); at 2:00 PM, he will call London to explain it to the European sales team at the morning meeting in Europe; and at 8:00 PM, he will explain it again at the Americana morning meeting.

The sales team then forwards the research report to the client, who can quickly contact them by email or phone from around the world if they have any questions.

The established rule is that important clients must be responded to within one to two hours.

Last summer, Du Wenming took up the position of chief economist at Liu's Overseas, a top foreign investment bank.

Their macroeconomic research team is much smaller than that of mainland securities firms. Top investment banks typically only have two to three people in their macroeconomic research team, and the workload is quite heavy.

"I'm much busier than when I was at 'Jingxi Capital,' there's so much work to do," he told the reporter when talking about his feelings about taking on the role of chief.

Generally, his reports are released at the following times: when official macroeconomic data is released, when there are significant policy changes such as interest rate cuts or increases, when major policy meetings are held, and when hot topics such as debt, real estate, and exchange rates are discussed.

This 118-story high-end complex also houses top global financial institutions such as Morgan Stanley, Deutsche Bank, and Credit Suisse.

Foreign banks serve global clients, which means being in the office at six in the morning and working at a hectic pace is the norm for economists at these investment banks.

The capital market in Xia State was established more than ten years ago. When it was ten years old, some securities firms followed the example of foreign banks and set up the position of "chief economist". It then quickly spread and became popular among other financial institutions.

Chief economists have become the spokespeople and face of their respective institutions.

As the names of economists are frequently featured in the media, they are becoming increasingly familiar and influential.

Each industry research institute has also established its own industry chief.

Behind the huge difference between annual salaries of tens of millions and hundreds of thousands lies their bloody underworld.

According to the "China Securities Industry Development Report 2001", as of the end of last year, 45 out of the 55 securities companies nationwide with A-share securities brokerage qualifications had established research institutes.

Among them, 40 research institutes carried out product promotion and service work for institutional clients.

Moreover, most research institutes have not achieved break-even.

This number is astonishing. Overseas, there are generally fewer than 20 such firms, and only large investment banks have research departments; smaller investment banks typically do not conduct research.

The oversupply in the research market has created an even worse environment, with fund managers often only giving their chief economists a few minutes to present, and their attitudes being poor.

In this ecosystem, whoever is more recognized and has a greater reputation in the market will be relatively stronger and have more say.

When she first took office as chief, Lu Wenqi always felt that she was a little overwhelmed when she went on roadshows to buyers, and the process was not very smooth.

Fund managers don't have much patience for the new chief analyst on the sell-side.

Lu Wenqi has encountered some young fund managers who frequently boast about managing hundreds of millions of yuan, and who dismiss his claims with disdain.

For Lu Wenqi, it was common for her self-esteem to be hurt.

However, such cases are still rare, after all, "Jingxi Capital" has a very strong presence in China.

Lu Wenqi works 15 to 16 hours a day, spends two-thirds of his time on business trips, and takes at least one long-haul international flight across continents every month on average. With his hard work, he quickly opened up new opportunities and gained market recognition.

In 2000 and 2001, the economic research team of "Jingxi Capital" led by Lu Wenqi was ranked first in Asia by Institutional Investor magazine for two consecutive years.

On the wall of Lu Wenqi's office hangs a world map, densely covered with red pins, each pin representing a financial center he has visited in the past three years.

Cities like New York, London, Tokyo, and Singapore witnessed countless all-nighters he spent.

He was browsing the Wall Street News online when he suddenly noticed a news flash about the Federal Reserve raising interest rates.

"Xiao Zhang, call a team meeting immediately." Lu Wenqi pressed the intercom, her voice steady and powerful.

Ten minutes later, more than ten analysts gathered in the conference room, where the latest economic model had been displayed on the projector.

“This interest rate hike exceeded expectations, and we need to reassess its impact on emerging markets.” Lu Wenqi pointed to the data flashing on the screen, her eyes sharp as an eagle.

Meanwhile, Du Wenming in Hong Kong was having lunch with a hedge fund tycoon at a Michelin-starred restaurant in Central.

Under the crystal chandelier, he calmly analyzed the RMB exchange rate trend, and the curve he drew on his napkin made the investors present nod frequently.

“Dr. Du,” a white-haired fund manager raised his glass, “your warning about debt risks last time saved us from losses of at least two hundred million US dollars.”

(End of this chapter)