America: My Time

Chapter 101 Hurricane Investment
Chapter 101 Hurricane Investment

The coming year is crucial, and many things require careful handling, especially the gold futures issue. This money must not be exposed under any circumstances. Many things shouldn't have happened this year, but due to unforeseen circumstances, they have been brought forward, attracting a lot of attention. For my own safety, I need to be even more cautious going forward.

John didn't intend to entrust the bank acquisition to Morgan; he only needed a small bank. Over the past year, he had gained a thorough understanding of US banks and realized that medium-sized and larger banks were unsuitable for acquisition. The US banking industry is complex, with extremely cumbersome internal accounting systems, especially for larger banks. Acquiring a small bank for expansion was far more convenient, simple, and direct than acquiring a medium-sized one!
What I wanted was a boutique small bank with international settlement qualifications. Banks with international settlement qualifications are generally medium-sized or larger banks, making them rare among small banks, hence the term "boutique." Under normal circumstances, acquiring such a bank wouldn't be easy. But now it was the early 1980s, and the US banking industry was in a difficult situation, especially for small and medium-sized banks.

John relied on his family's resources to complete the acquisition of the bank, which cost $30 million. Although it was a bit high, since a small bank's net assets couldn't possibly be that much, John didn't care. What he needed was time, and $30 million was within his budget.

To strengthen the bank's capital, John invested another $50 million, ready to expand at any time. In the bank's plan, it was just a savings bank, but this bank would be the foundation of his company in the United States and the foundation of the conglomerate.

Although John did not keep the acquisition of the bank a secret, the news quickly spread among Wall Street giants after he took over the bank. John had acquired a small bank, 'Integrity Bank', a small bank with international settlement qualifications!
Before Wall Street giants could react, a company called 'Hurricane Investments' emerged on Wall Street as well. This company not only had branches on Wall Street but also in Silicon Valley, indicating that John was about to make a major foray into the investment field.

When the Wall Street giants got their hands on the information about Honesty Bank and Hurricane Investment, they couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. The bank had less than 100 million in assets, which was insignificant. It was a typical small bank that posed no threat to them. If John hadn't invested another 50 million, its net assets would have been even more pitiful. The investment company also only had 100 million in capital, all of which was taken from the financing in the game world.

"Boss, this kid's behavior is a bit strange. If it were just acquiring a small bank with international settlement qualifications, that would make sense, as it's to prepare for the settlement business of his subsidiaries. But the investment company is problematic. Does he intend to expand into the investment industry? According to Hurricane Investment's information, this company focuses on analyzing stock market changes using computers as its core for trading. That seems too frivolous. There are no such investment companies on Wall Street. Isn't this kid afraid of losing his investment?"

"It is indeed surprising, yet it makes sense. Don't forget that Hurricane Investment is cooperating with Dream World on minicomputers, databases, and software. Perhaps the investment company is a facade, and the real purpose is the development of Dream World. The investment company is just to cover up Dream World's secrets, or perhaps the investment company is just Dream World's testing ground. Don't forget the system Dream World used when it raised funds in the game world!"

"Hiss, could it be that Dream World has figured out how to apply computers to stock trading systems? If that's true, we can't fall behind. We must find out the details. Workstations, minicomputers, operating systems, trading software—Dream World has the capability to do all of this. If they really have, it is indeed a remarkable invention!"

"I'm keeping a close eye on this company. I need to know everything about it. I need to know about any developments immediately. If Dream World succeeds, it will have potential that surpasses even the game world!"

"Okay, boss, I'll keep a close eye on it!"

"No, it's not about closely observing it, but about understanding its internal situation. At the very least, we need to know what kind of cooperation this company has with Chu Xiang World."

"Boss, I'm afraid that will be difficult. This is just a new company, and I don't think that bastard John would be unaware of the company's security issues!"

“Jimmy, we have to overcome difficulties. If we don’t even understand the other party’s situation, or the foundation of this investment company, how can we know about Dream World’s plans, or determine its market value? I don’t want to make the same mistake again. We can’t afford to repeat the same mistake regarding the market value of the game world. Do you understand?” Jimmy understood perfectly well, but while he understood, putting it into practice was incredibly difficult. It was a new company, and one that had been preparing for this for a long time; planting people within it was virtually impossible! Without planting spies within Hurricane Investment, how could they possibly know the other party’s plans? As for Dream World, Jimmy had even less of an idea. If there was a truly grand plan, it would be kept absolutely secret, and no one would be given a chance.

Faced with his boss's request, Jimmy wore a wry smile, unsure how to broach the subject. Since he couldn't find a reason, he could only remain silent.

"Alright, do your best. Although there are difficulties, it is precisely because of these difficulties that your abilities can be demonstrated. I believe in you. You can do it!"

This situation wasn't just playing out at Morgan Stanley; all the Wall Street giants were talking about Hurricane Investment and Integrity Bank, all eager to know what John was up to and what Hurricane Investment's goals were. The matter of financing the game world was completely forgotten by them.

It wouldn't be entirely accurate to say that Hurricane Investment was merely a tool to attract the attention of Wall Street giants. This investment firm also had a detailed plan; as Morgan envisioned, it was indeed an experimental ground for a dream world, but it wasn't just about developing stock trading; it also involved validating information and data services.
Dream World wants to become a Bloomberg machine and seize the initiative in information services, providing services to major investment banks. As for the source of information, John has also set his sights on acquisition targets: United Press International, the second largest news agency in the United States and one of the world's four major news agencies.

This company was acquired by a news media company in June of this year. John was not optimistic about the acquisition. In fact, it would go bankrupt in 85. Everyone only saw the media influence of United Press International and only wanted to develop in the media, while John saw the potential for economic development.

If we could acquire United Press International, it would be able to do things that Bloomberg couldn't. The two are not even in the same league in terms of size and reputation. The prerequisite is that Dream World's terminals and communication exchange system are in good working order, which will take time to accumulate.

While many were trying to understand the situation regarding Hurricane Investment, John had returned to school to continue his studies and enrich himself. He was also making further preparations. Although he had determined the direction of the next acquisition, he needed to have a detailed understanding of these companies, at least their assets, and financial oversight. Human nature cannot withstand the test, and relaxing oversight would only harm himself and others.

With the funding rounds completed and the emergence of Integrity Bank and Hurricane Investment, Wall Street giants gradually turned their attention to Hurricane Investment. However, the results were a huge disappointment. Hurricane Investment had very few staff members; it was essentially just a framework. Although Hurricane Investment was also on Wall Street, its development left them bewildered. Many people in the investment industry couldn't understand Hurricane Investment's progress, leading many to believe that it was merely a testing ground for a fantasy world!

Next, Wall Street's attention returned to Dreamworld. They were eager to know the extent of Dreamworld's research on the system that had appeared during its previous financing rounds, and what Dreamworld's purpose was. Unfortunately, Wall Street did not know much about the computer field, and they could not determine Dreamworld's direction.

IBM, an industry giant, is under increasing pressure. They vaguely understand that the development direction of Dreamworld is the research of professional computers and minicomputers, which will have a huge impact on IBM. Apple, on the other hand, is relieved, at least Dreamworld is not developing personal computers, so it has not had an impact on them.

Apple had previously underestimated Dreamworld, but when they learned about Dreamworld's system, they realized how foolish they had been. Dreamworld was far more terrifying than they had imagined, and it had even obtained a patent for a graphical operating system before them and was already putting it into practical use. Moreover, Dreamworld's system did not run on personal computers, but only on professional workstations and minicomputers!
(End of this chapter)