Return to 1958 and build a century-old giant

Chapter 847 Major Investments in the US Stock Market

Now that Best Buy is preparing to go public, there's no need to keep its situation a secret any longer.
His reason for wanting to go public early was to take advantage of the current IT industry bubble and make more money through the IPO. At the same time, he could sell or raise funds in advance if he waited for the 87 stock market crash, and then buy back some shares after the stock price plummeted.
“Okay, no problem.” Barney smiled and then asked, “What about your KFC and Red Bull brands? Are you planning to raise funds or go public?”

“Red Bull is out of the question for now. As you know, I'm still burning through cash with Coca-Cola. Bringing in your funds would only slow things down. Let's consider financing after we have the results,” Yang Wendong said. “As for KFC, we can consider it. I'll have someone prepare the relevant documents, and I estimate we'll have our first round of financing within a year.”

KFC's financing is inevitable. Although it is a small industry, it is still based in the United States, so it needs to bring in local connections.
After all, KFC's competitors, such as McDonald's and Burger King, have already accepted financing and gone public. If KFC does not agree, there are many funding opportunities to help them fight against KFC. In that case, KFC will still be fighting against the big funds in the United States, which is unnecessary.

Whether it's Best Buy or KFC, as long as I can maintain a controlling stake, that's all that matters.

As for Red Bull, it is still burning money to grab market share. Even if it raises funds now, many investors may not be optimistic that it can beat giants like Coca-Cola. So it is better to wait and wait until it wins.
Furthermore, it's possible he's preparing to take 100% control of Red Bull, similar to Ferrero in Italy. The specifics will depend on future international developments; whether it's holding it himself or listing it on the stock exchange, he'll choose whichever is most advantageous.

It's impossible to hold all of them ourselves, nor is it necessary to list them all; it all depends on business needs.

Barney laughed and said, "Okay, if KFC needs to raise funds or go public, Goldman Sachs would be happy to serve you."

“Okay, I’ll do the same.” Yang Wendong nodded;
At its current scale, it needs to cooperate appropriately with top global financial companies. Even if it wants to acquire a company in the future, it will need to rely on such companies if it lacks sufficient background. For profit, companies like Goldman Sachs will find ways to help their clients; that's how they make money.

In the following days in New York, Yang Wendong visited several investment banks, including Morgan Stanley and Lehman Brothers, and the messages he released were similar to those of Goldman Sachs.

Now, his businesses in the United States are not small in scale, enough to make these financial giants compete for cooperation, so as to maximize his own interests;

Lehman Brothers had even bigger ambitions; they wanted to raise funds from their Hong Kong businesses and list them in the US, such as Honor Electronics and Watsons, which Yang Wendong naturally rejected.

Companies listed in the United States do so because they make money in the US and are based in the US. They have no choice but to list in the US. And their businesses in Hong Kong cannot be moved to the US as well.
As a time traveler, he naturally knew how domineering the future US policies would be. Any company listed in the US would be subject to US control over its actions in other countries and subject to global taxation. Yang Wendong was not going to be foolish. Moreover, he could still use his foresight to help many industries in Hong Kong develop in the future, so it was impossible for them to be listed at that time, not even in Hong Kong.

After visiting several major American financial institutions, the purpose of this trip to the United States is pretty much complete.

The financing plans for companies like Best Buy and KFC still need to be negotiated with several major financial companies, or other new companies may be brought in. These negotiations will take some time, and it involves not only funding but also various resource investments.

Yang Wendong naturally couldn't stay in the United States for an extended period to discuss these matters, so he handed the matter over to Lin Youtian, the head of the US region.

“You Tian, ​​you and the law firm in the US will discuss the rest with Goldman Sachs. We need to maximize our interests,” Yang Wendong said. “Also, Best Buy and KFC’s IPOs will be their most desired business opportunities. We need to make good use of that.”

"Understood, Mr. Yang," Lin Youtian said with a smile.

Yang Wendong continued, "Besides this, there's another one: Chrysler stock. You can secretly acquire some more shares. I still have faith in Leah Iacocca. Plus, the US Congress has already lent them $15 billion, and the oil crisis seems to be improving recently. Chrysler should be able to turn things around."

At the beginning of this year, after President Reagan took office, he approved a $15 billion loan to Chrysler, which was the first time in U.S. history that the government had lent money to a private company, setting a precedent.

However, even with the loans, Chrysler's debt hole is still too big. It's selling off various businesses everywhere, including those in South America and Europe. The market is still not optimistic about it, so its stock price remains very low.

Lin Youtian asked, "So we're just making a purely economic investment and not pursuing any rights or interests?"

“Of course, I previously transferred the equity of our 19.9% ​​stake to Leah Iacocca. Now, your investment is entirely a multi-account acquisition and doesn't need to be disclosed.” Yang Wendong nodded and said, “Once Chrysler's stock price recovers in the future, we'll sell it all.”

Chrysler's peak was around 85, when it was most profitable, even surpassing General Motors.

However, the peak period was too short. By the late 80s, the Japanese companies had crushed them. So around 84/85, they would have cashed out all their stocks.

This is purely an economic investment. In addition, it can also help Mini purchase some Chrysler technology, which is already being discussed in the UK.

Mini's technology is outdated, and the technology it needs isn't the most advanced either. Chrysler is currently heavily indebted and is naturally willing to sell some outdated technologies, which makes it easier for Mini to upgrade its technology. The two companies have even engaged in strategic cooperation; for example, Chrysler sent a technical team to the UK to optimize Mini's latest engine and transmission.

In terms of technology, American cars are now no less advanced than Japanese cars, but they lack fuel efficiency, which makes them less competitive. However, they are still far superior to the declining British car manufacturers.

Lin Youtian agreed, "Okay, I'll arrange it right away. However, we already have a lot of funds in the US; one Chrysler isn't enough."

“I never imagined we’d have such a problem.” Yang Wendong smiled and said, “How about this, you acquire the stock of these companies: Motorola, Coca-Cola, General Electric, Boeing, Merck, and American Express.”
These companies are quite large and can hold sufficient funds. Buy a little from each one, gradually increasing your investment. Don't attract too much market attention; I'll focus on economic investments.

Within Changxing Group, only a very few people, such as Yang Wendong and Fang Xianming, knew about the gold futures trading. Even those who traded stocks were separate individuals; they only knew their own side, that is, that their boss might have made several hundred million dollars through gold, and knew nothing else.

Although Lin Youtian was in charge of the US business, he was not involved in this matter. However, since a portion of the large sum of money remained in the United States, he was aware of some of it, and the arrangement of these funds required his involvement.

Involving billions of dollars, it's difficult to invest all of it in the US today without attracting attention, not even in the real estate market. After all, in big cities like Los Angeles, the change of ownership of a skyscraper can make the news. Only buying shares in large companies over a longer period of time can avoid attracting attention.

The companies he mentioned are all future giants, and their current scale is not small, capable of accommodating sufficient funds. In particular, General Electric, Coca-Cola, American Express, etc., are expected to see growth of up to ten times in the next ten years or so, while the other companies are also expected to see growth of several times.

Don't be fooled by the seemingly low growth rate; compared to the IT industry, it's far behind. The IT industry's high growth rate is due to its current small scale, which simply can't accommodate too much capital.

When you have enough capital, it's already quite good if you can multiply your investment several times, let alone dozens of times.

The companies I've chosen are the most suitable investment targets.

Lin Youtian agreed, "Okay, then I will acquire the shares of these companies. But if it reaches 5%, will it need to be disclosed? Mr. Yang, do you have any other plans?"

Yang Wendong thought for a moment and said, "With so many companies, it will cost a lot of money. There are a few of them that I may want to cooperate with, which would require public investment. We'll talk about it when the time comes."

If it's just pure economic investment, then using a large number of small accounts to acquire shares at a rate of ten or twenty percent is fine as long as it's not discovered.

However, according to US law, if an acquisition reaches 5% and wants to obtain legal rights, it must be disclosed. If it is not disclosed, the economic rights of these shares are still there, but the voting rights and other rights granted by law will be lost.

Therefore, it is very difficult for hostile takeovers like those in Hong Kong to occur in the United States. Hostile takeovers in the history of the United States are extremely difficult and usually end in negotiation or failure.

“Okay, I understand,” Lin Youtian replied.

Yang Wendong continued, "You should also collect information on American companies. I'll take a look at it as well. If we find any other suitable companies, we can also buy some shares."

He's not a superman, and he can't guarantee he'll remember everything, so it would be best if he could go through it all again.

"No problem, I've had relevant information all these years. I'll have someone deliver it to me later," Lin Youtian said with a smile.

He has been in the United States for more than ten years and has done research on the US stock market and housing market, compiling the information in case his boss needs it someday.

"Well done." Yang Wendong smiled and said, "There's no rush. Send me my new plane. I can take a look at it when I have free time on my journey."

Another purpose of my trip to the United States is that my Boeing 747 has been fully renovated.

Normally, buying an airplane would take a long time, but due to the previous oil crisis, Boeing's airplanes were not selling well, which allowed him to not only buy a 747 cheaply, but also basically get it on hand.

However, Boeing only manufactures the airframe. Boeing has not yet entered the business jet field, so it does not have this business. Therefore, the aircraft was sent to Ohio, where there is a professional business jet decoration company.
After obtaining permission from Yang Wendong's design, the company spent another six months completing the renovations. Just then, Yang Wendong arrived in New York, and his plane flew over.

"Congratulations to Mr. Yang on getting a new plane," Lin Youtian said with a smile.

Yang Wendong said, "Alright, that's settled. My family will be here tomorrow. We'll keep in touch by phone for future matters."

The Boeing 747, an aircraft of this class, is generally used by presidents of major powers, except for commercial purposes, such as the US president and several major European powers.
Using it as a business jet is a level of luxury that far exceeds that of the wealthy in Europe and America.
Of course, it's not that wealthy people in Europe and America can't afford them, but rather that they don't need to. Their main business is in Europe and America, so a small plane is usually sufficient.

Don't be fooled by how luxurious large airplanes are; in terms of convenience, they can't compare to small airplanes. Gulfstream-class aircraft can easily take off and land at small private airports, which is very convenient; Boeing aircraft, on the other hand, require large international airports.

There's no other way. As a Hong Konger, Yang Wendong has businesses all over the world, so naturally he needs a plane that can fly across continents. This is different from the situation of wealthy people in Europe and America.

The next day, the Yang family arrived at New York's JFK International Airport. The airport staff were mostly seeing such a super-luxurious private jet for the first time and were quite surprised.
Under the watchful eyes of numerous airport personnel, Yang Wendong and his entourage entered the cabin.

Upon entering, there is a foyer space inlaid with gold thread, the wood is top-grade olive wood imported from Italy, and the carpet underfoot is made from wool produced by the best sheep in New Zealand.
In front of the entrance hall, there are several calligraphy and paintings. These are from the collection of a businessman from a Hong Kong museum. Yang Wendong also brought them over to put on the plane. These are ancient calligraphy and paintings that he likes. They are not usually kept in museums, since he only goes there once a year. They are usually kept at home or in the company office.

As his international business grows, he also needs to consider putting some of his favorite things on the plane.

Su Yiyi, Bai Yushan, and several children quickly entered the airplane and began moving around.
A moment later, Su Yiyi exclaimed, "Brother Dong, this plane feels like a palace in the sky."

"Haha, this is our future sky palace," Yang Wendong said with a laugh;

PS: Please give me a monthly ticket
(End of this chapter)