Mixed in 1980

Chapter 376 Planning for the Great Bauhinia

Li Zhaoji was very troubled. A rise in stock price is usually a good thing, but at other times, it would only fuel the speculation, making the stock price even higher, allowing him to sell off the remaining shares and cash out.

Now, however, he has been targeted by Soros!
Stabilizing or even suppressing stock prices will allow for a more composed response when the economic crisis hits Hong Kong and the country's speculators short the market.

Chen Fan understood his predicament and looked at Yu Jing: "Back in 85, we acquired shares in the gas company and haven't touched them since. How many shares do we have?"

Yu Jing immediately said, "At that time, we acquired 15% of the gas company's shares and also purchased a large number of circulating shares from the market, accounting for about 3%."

Upon hearing this, Li Zhaoji was stunned. Chen Fan was ruthless enough to have snapped up so many shares in 1985 and then just left them there: "You're quite patient with long-term investments, aren't you?"

Chen Fan chuckled awkwardly, "Back then the stock price was low, and you've done a great job all these years. It's probably tripled by now, right?"

"More or less!" Li Zhaoji nodded.

At the time, its market value was around 200 billion; based on the current stock price, it is now worth over 600 billion.

Chen Fan laughed and said, "That's settled then. If there's money to be made in the long run, I'm too lazy to bother with anything else. Yu Jing, you work with Lao Li to sell all the circulating shares."

“Okay, Mr. Chen!” Yu Jing replied.

"Thanks!" Li Zhaoji breathed a sigh of relief. With more chips in hand, and combined with public opinion, he should be able to drive the stock price down considerably.

"Don't mention it, let's get rich together!"

Chen Fan smiled slightly and said, "Let's get down to business. Following Siam and the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Singapore will definitely be affected, and the outcome will be decided in a short time."

Then, he looked at Shipping King Dong and asked, "Comrade Dong, what's the situation in Malaysia?"

Dong, the shipping magnate, grinned slightly: "The Malaysian Ringgit has already been affected. International speculators have launched a probing attack, and they should be launching a full-scale offensive soon."

Chen Fan nodded slightly, then looked at Zhao Chuanwang and Hua Sanshao, the father and son in charge of the inkpad.

Zhao, the shipping magnate, shook his head slightly: "India has been less affected and is not fluctuating much at present. Speculators from countries led by Soros have not made any moves yet."

Indonesia was indeed the last Southeast Asian country to be affected, but it was also the hardest hit. Chen Fan had anticipated this: "International speculators would definitely make their move, we just have to wait."

Then, he looked at Li Zhaoji and asked, "You're in charge of Po County. How's the situation there?"

Singapore is the most developed country in Southeast Asia, with foreign exchange reserves of over US$900 billion. Its annual fiscal expenditure does not exceed its revenue, and it has a fiscal surplus every year with no debt.

This kind of credit makes the Singapore dollar very stable.

Among the Southeast Asian countries, Singapore is the most difficult to deal with. Among everyone present, Li Zhaoji has the strongest financial ability, which is why he was put in charge.

"Po County has a healthy finance and sufficient foreign exchange reserves, which seems perfect, but its development in recent years has also been fraught with problems."

"Like Hong Kong, housing prices are high and a lot of real estate has been developed, creating a huge bubble that could collapse at any time. This is our opportunity."

"Besides that, there's the stock market!"

"In order to establish itself as a national financial center, Singapore has implemented an open financial policy, and residents have poured their assets into the financial market, resulting in a huge bubble."

"Our targets are the Singaporean government, the foreign exchange market, the stock market, and the futures market."

At this point, Li Zhaoji lit a cigarette and unconsciously raised the corners of his mouth: "Because of the opening up of the financial sector, it is much easier to borrow Singapore dollars or securities."

"We will attack Singapore the way Soros plans to attack Hong Kong."

"When international speculators target Malaysia, we'll target Singapore and drive down the exchange rate of the Singapore dollar. With Singapore's foreign exchange reserves, it's impossible to cripple it, so the devaluation won't be too significant. Fortunately, we have enough Singapore dollars in hand, so the profits won't be small."

"Secondly, there's the stock market. We've already signed agreements with securities firms to focus on shorting financial and real estate stocks. These two sectors have huge bubbles, and it won't be a problem to bring them down by half."

"Finally, there are stock index futures contracts. We have already bought 50 short positions in stock index futures, with an agreed price of 100 Singapore dollars per point."

After hearing this, everyone burst into laughter.

Old Li has great courage and ruthless methods. As for whether he can succeed, no one is worried at all. Southeast Asia is like a fish on a chopping board, only able to be slaughtered at will.

Not only in Southeast Asia, but also in Japan and South Korea!
Li Hongying was in charge of the Japanese operation, which was relatively simple. The main task was to attack the foreign exchange market, make a quick profit from the exchange rate, and then leave.

The Korean side is in charge, with Xinghuo Investment sending President Wu Zhijie to assist. The attack here is quite complex and is related to the later acquisition plan.

It's hard to say how much they'll actually be able to eat in the end.

The big boss's eyes were green with lust when she looked at Han Bang, like a hungry wolf, as if she planned to devour him whole.

In the aftermath of the economic crisis, South Korean conglomerates fell into decline; Samsung was broken up and foreign capital entered the fray; Daewoo Group's automotive division was acquired cheaply by foreign investors; and the eight major banks came under foreign control...

The price the US paid for this was nothing more than providing South Korea with a $570 billion loan through the International Monetary Fund.

Why did South Koreans become so incredibly wealthy and powerful in later generations? The most important reason is that they had American backers who completely controlled the lifeline of South Korean pop culture.

The same thing happened in Southeast Asia. When the economic crisis hit, the United States also provided loans to Southeast Asian countries through the IMF (International Monetary Fund).

The prerequisite is the signing of an unequal treaty!

Of the four Asian Tigers, only Malaysia has the backbone to refuse to lend money, even at the cost of its own life.

With the US eyeing the market with great interest, it will undoubtedly be difficult for the government to acquire companies and technologies in South Korea, and it is unlikely to yield significant results.

The official requirements aren't too strict. Even a small profit is still profit, and as long as the technology is more advanced than their own, they can buy it to avoid some detours.

In the conference room, everyone chatted freely.

In the afternoon, news came from the Philippines that the peso had begun to depreciate, with the exchange rate plummeting by 13% within half a day, leaving the Philippines powerless to resist.

Big Liu laughed as he smoked a cigarette: "As expected, the Filipinos were powerless to resist. They surrendered right at the beginning. They have no guts at all. No wonder they can only be Filipino maids."

"International speculators are not paying attention to the Philippines, and the sell-off is basically complete. We still have to watch them."

Liu picked up his phone and issued a second-stage sell-off order to his traders in the Philippines, with the goal of completely crushing the Philippine peso.

To achieve this goal, the planning took more than a year and a half, far more thorough than that of Soros.

Chen Fan had said long ago that if you're going to do something, you should do it to the death, and at least make the Philippines' economy regress by twenty years.

Soros quickly received the news: "These guys in Hong Kong are even more ruthless than us. We're here to make money, but they're here to cripple their opponents."

"Given the extent of their sell-off, the Philippine peso will likely become worthless, which is good for us as it will significantly increase our profits."

"And the momentum is even greater!"

"If we attack Malaysia and Singapore next, we will surely receive a lot of support and quickly collapse the financial systems of these two countries."

With shared interests, the two sides quickly reached an agreement, and Soros once again exerted pressure in the media, accelerating the exodus of foreign capital from the Philippines. Another day has passed!
The exchange rate plummeted from 26 pesos to 50 pesos to 1 US dollar, a drop of nearly 50%, and shows no signs of stopping.

Da Liu set off early in the morning. When the plane landed in the Philippines, the peso had already fallen to 63 pesos to 1 US dollar, a drop of nearly 59%.

Seeing this, Soros was very excited. The drop far exceeded expectations, and he couldn't help but marvel once again at how ruthless those people in Hong Kong were and how deep their plans were.

Moreover, those people in Hong Kong showed no signs of stopping, continuing to sell pesos and exert pressure on public opinion, leading to a large outflow of foreign capital.

"The Filipino monkeys are finished!"

Soros slightly raised the corners of his mouth: "The next step should be for the International Monetary Fund to step in and cut another piece of flesh from the Philippines."

"The Philippines' economy will regress by at least 10 years!"

"This is assuming that Hong Kong capital stops now. If the attack continues for several days, the Philippines' economy will regress by more than 20 years."

Three days later, 1 US dollar can be exchanged for 150 pesos!

Looking at the financial statements, Zeng Ali of Xinghuo Investment twitched at the corner of her mouth: "Soros really took the fall for you; his reputation in Southeast Asia is completely ruined."

"Even without me, his reputation is just as bad. When Southeast Asians mention Soros, they will only say that his hands are stained with the blood of Southeast Asia."

Chen Fan smoked a cigarette and slowly exhaled the smoke: "Back when they attacked the British pound, didn't I also take the fall for them and draw all the fire? The British still hate me to the core."

"They even gave me a nickname, 'The guy who stabbed me in the pound,' and now he's taking the fall for me. It's just a matter of tit for tat."

Hearing this, Zeng Ali smiled and poured her husband a cup of tea: "Smoke less. You've been smoking a lot since coming to Hong Kong. Be careful not to get addicted again."

Chen Fan hummed in agreement, stubbed out his cigarette, and took a sip of tea: "I smoke a lot because I have a lot of important business to attend to. How's your funding preparation going?"

"Other brands were not affected; funds were mainly diverted from Lululemon and the Yangcheng factory."

In addition to Lululemon and Yangcheng Factory, Zeng Ali's Starlight Investment has successively established several Chinese-style luxury brands and a sports brand.

After several years of development, it has established itself as a "high-end" brand, but its sales are only average, unlike Lululemon, which has become a huge success.

There is still a long way to go.

Lululemon and its Guangzhou factory have been doing very well in recent years. Apart from using the funds for expansion, the cash in the accounts has remained untouched, with $50 billion withdrawn.

It's clear that Lululemon is making real money.

Chen Fan nodded slightly, then looked at his wife: "Miss Zhao, what about your side?"

The main asset of Zhao Yuanyuan's Xingmang Investment is Luoshen skincare, in addition to anti-aging products and medical aesthetic projects in which she has invested heavily in recent years.

The two women were in similar situations; the money in their companies' accounts hadn't been touched much: "They both withdrew $50 billion. In addition, they still had a lot of money in their private accounts from the last shorting of the British pound, so taking out another $10 billion shouldn't be a problem."

Zeng Ali added, "Me too!"

After thinking for a moment, he added, "I haven't asked you this before, but with your current financial reserves, even if Soros attacks Hong Kong, there's no need for him to drag the two of us into it, is there?"

"Is there another purpose?"

Chen Fan nodded slightly, pulled his eldest daughter-in-law to sit on his lap, and put his arm around her slender waist: "I want to compete for the Grand Bauhinia Medal and the Gold Bauhinia Medal for the two of you."

The Grand Bauhinia Medal is Hong Kong's highest honor, awarded to outstanding individuals who have made significant contributions to Hong Kong society throughout their lives. The first award ceremony was held on July 1st.

The Gold Bauhinia Medal is the highest honor awarded to individuals who have made significant contributions to society or have been highly regarded for their active participation in public affairs.

The awards will be issued starting next year, 98!
Chen Fan explained briefly: "The Grand Bauhinia Medal needs time to mature, but there's still a chance for the Gold Bauhinia Medal next year."

"When Soros attacks Hong Kong, you will contribute by taking out your resources to fight against the Wall Street giants and safeguard Hong Kong's financial stability."

Upon hearing this, Zeng Ali's eyes lit up, and she kissed her husband on the lips: "I'll arrange it tomorrow, to mortgage Lululemon and get another US dollar from the international bank."

Chen Fan was taken aback: "Isn't that necessary?"

Zeng Ali kissed her husband again: "It's necessary. This way it's more secure. Apart from the second child, the other four of us have Hong Kong residency. With this honor, the children's social status in Hong Kong will be different in the future. It's not just about having money."

Then, he looked at Zhao Yuanyuan and said, "You too, pawn Luoshen tomorrow."

Zhao Yuanyuan said "Oh," and Zeng Ali immediately glared at her: "Don't take this lightly. It's a rare opportunity. If you make a mistake, you'll be in big trouble."

It's no wonder Zeng Ali values ​​it so much. Both the Grand Bauhinia Medal and the Gold Bauhinia Medal represent national recognition and can serve as a protective charm when necessary.

When the Grand Bauhinia Medal was awarded, Hong Kong's tycoons fought tooth and nail for it, vying for votes with great intensity.

Even if not for herself, Zeng Ali would fight for the children.

They have a chance.

As long as you make a significant enough contribution to Hong Kong during the economic crisis, you can at least earn a Gold Bauhinia Medal.

As for the Grand Bauhinia Medal, there is also a chance.

Chen Fan is certainly qualified to receive this honor, but he will not accept it. In this way, the compensation may be given to the two of them.

When voting, many people also give Chen Fan face.

After making the decision, Zeng Ali took action. The next day, she and Zhao Yuanyuan went to an international bank and mortgaged Lululemon and Luoshen.

"Soros, Wall Street tycoons, international speculators... come on over!"

With a clear goal in mind, Zeng Ali actually looked forward to this financial battle in Hong Kong, which would be their chance to raise their flag.

The financial war continues to rage in Southeast Asia.

The Philippines has been completely defeated. Liu and his men went there and began a frenzy of buying up the stock at rock-bottom prices. They also provided the Philippines with a loan on the condition that they acquire the port.

Old Huo did the same thing back in Siam.

Southeast Asian countries, lacking funds, had no choice but to agree, and both Huo and Liu's plans to buy at rock-bottom prices went exceptionally smoothly.

December 14, 1997!
At another crucial juncture, after several probing attacks, international speculators led by Soros finally launched a full-scale offensive against Malaysia.

The Central Bank of Malaysia has abandoned its intervention in the foreign exchange market, and the ringgit has begun to float freely.

At the same time, Li Zhaoji made a move against Po Yuan.

P.S.: First update is 4K words, one more to go! Thanks for your support!
(End of this chapter)