America: My Time

Chapter 1439 Rockefeller's Greed

Chapter 1429 Rockefeller's Greed
As Bentley Group went on a rampage, the asset restructuring process accelerated. Before Bentley Group could stabilize or the noise could subside, the pharmaceutical group also sprang into action, revealing John's madness and determination. Soon, apart from the pharmaceutical companies in the United States, the others were spun off. Just when everyone thought this was the limit, Shire Pharmaceuticals acquired Iran Company, and the financial backer behind it turned out to be the restructured Bank of Ireland!
This wasn't the end of it all. Retail was also going crazy. Asda in the UK acquired Metro, this time backed by Hurricane Investments. No one expected Hurricane Investments to be so deeply hidden. Only when the acquisition was completed did everyone realize that Hurricane Investments had been targeting Metro for a long time, continuously acquiring Metro's stock. It wasn't until this final explosion that people realized how terrifying John's methods were. This wasn't a short period of time; it spanned more than a decade. Just that patience and persistence are terrifying! If this acquisition is combined with the previous acquisition by Bentley Group, how insane and terrifying it is.

What enabled the acquisition to be completed so smoothly and to obtain approval? There were many interests and other issues involved, yet it was all accomplished in such a short time. What was the reason? This has piqued the curiosity of many, who want to find out, but when they finally understand, they fall silent!
What was it? It was the strategic deployment of internet companies. John abandoned those internet companies in the United States and instead made arrangements in Europe. Major European countries would invest funds to build their portal websites, but John's shareholding was limited to only one-third. The rest of the shares were arranged by the people in those countries. This exchange of interests was enough to tempt anyone. Even those guys in Germany were swayed, so you can imagine the reactions of others.

That wasn't even the craziest part. John promised to sell them one-third of his shares by the end of 2000. Who wouldn't be tempted by such a profit? If it were any other time, perhaps it wouldn't have such a big impact, but things are different now. It's the bursting of the dot-com bubble. Who could resist the lure of profit?
It was precisely because of this exchange of benefits that everything went so smoothly, allowing John's plans to bear fruit in such a short time. Of course, the situation in Europe also drew attention to Asia. However, the result disappointed them; although John was also making moves, there was no expected transfer of benefits; instead, John controlled everything entirely.

It can't be said that he controlled it alone, but rather that it was controlled by Standard Chartered Bank, Hurricane Investments, and other funds. John was not in the public eye at all, so no one could say anything about it. But this situation was also fueling the frenzy of the dot-com bubble, which originally only existed in the United States, but has now begun to spread in Europe and Asia.

Europe was clearly more frenzied than Asia. The reason is simple: the Asian financial crisis had a significant impact on Asian countries, causing them heavy losses. It was impossible for them to push for the expansion of the internet bubble. But Europe was different, so John also dragged Europe into the internet bubble.

Of course, the main reason why these Europeans are so obedient is that they are not capable of competing with John on the internet. After all, John has already established a presence in Europe and has acquired the internet companies they want. Even if they are not on the same level as the companies in the United States, John's exchange of benefits is enough to tempt them.

John not only has a firm grasp on talent, but also has a head start. Even if they wanted to start their own internet company, they might not be able to compare with John, since John still controls the internet cafe alliance. Therefore, accepting John's 'goodwill' is the best choice. Moreover, cooperating with John at this time is more advantageous for them, since the internet bubble is expanding rapidly. John is practically offering them profits; it would be foolish not to take advantage of it!
John made this crazy decision precisely because he knew how Europeans viewed new things, offering them such huge concessions, practically selling off his internet companies in Europe! With such a tempting profit, Europe remained calm, and no one stood up to stop it, allowing John's plan to proceed smoothly.

Without hesitation, John dared not delay any longer. Bell Labs soon began to split up, but instead of the communications sector that the old guys in the US thought it was, they directly separated ARM and Nokia. Then, a consortium centered around the Bank of Ireland began to form a group.

Although centered around the Bank of Ireland, the conglomerate involved numerous companies, making the coordination of everything a challenging task requiring considerable time and effort. At this juncture, Mary Barra, the CEO of the Bentley Group, became a key member of the conglomerate, assisting John in coordinating various aspects of this nascent enterprise.

With Bentley Group, wine group, retail group, fashion and luxury goods group, European energy, pharmaceutical group, high-tech conglomerate consisting of Nokia and ARM, plus Irish bank, its strength is unparalleled. Because John sold the internet company here, he naturally has ample funds. So although all of this came about in a hurry, its strength is not an issue at all!

However, when the European consortium was successfully formed, everyone suddenly discovered that Standard Chartered Bank was not the center of the consortium, but rather independent of it. This discovery was hard for many to understand, given Standard Chartered Bank's immense strength. If it were to become the center of the European consortium, there would definitely be a qualitative leap forward!
You're overthinking it. In John's plan, Standard Chartered Bank won't become the center of European financial groups, otherwise many plans will be affected. Being independent is the best choice to give himself more protection.

“Morgan, we should talk to John. It would be best if he could come back so we can sit down and discuss things properly. Things in Europe shouldn't be like this. Even if he wants to step back from the limelight, there's no need to go to such lengths. The formation of a Korean conglomerate has already put a lot of pressure on us. Now it's a European conglomerate, and next there will be Japanese ones, and even Asian ones. If he continues like this, the pressure on us will be immense, and it might even affect Wall Street!”

"Rockefeller, what good is it for you to come to me? Do you think I can persuade John now, or do you think we can have a direct confrontation with John right now? You're not planning to burn bridges, are you? The bridge hasn't even been crossed yet, and you've already gained quite a bit of benefits. If you back out now, are you going to bear all the consequences?" Morgan showed no mercy to the other party. These guys were too greedy. They had already obtained enough benefits from John, but seeing the changes in the situation in Europe and seeing the huge price John had paid, they were tempted again!
It's true that profit can move people's hearts, but you can't be so greedy. Do you really think John is someone you can bully at will? Do you really think John won't kill them? Rockefeller's crisis in Southeast Asia has only just ended, and this guy has already come up with some inappropriate ideas. This leaves Morgan speechless!
"But his plan has a significant impact on us. I don't believe you're unaware of the immense threat this split will pose in the future. And what he shouldn't have done was sell off all the internet companies in Europe without even consulting us. That's incredibly disrespectful!" "Heh, why should they consult you? Do you really think you can control everything? If that's your attitude, I have nothing to say. Do what you want yourselves, don't drag me into it. I don't want to face this madman, John. Continue as long as you're not afraid of John's retaliation, not afraid of a storm on Wall Street. I don't want Morgan to lose huge profits for nothing. So many companies listed—that's a huge profit, not to mention Dreamworld and Nvidia. You should understand how large the gap is between GM's market capitalization and Dreamworld and Nvidia's in such a short time. If you're not worried about problems with this deal, then go ahead and do it. Anyway, if problems arise, it won't concern me! Don't forget that John sacrificed the interests of an entire industry. If things fall apart now, and John comes back with a vengeance, will Rockefeller bear all the consequences and losses?"

Faced with Morgan's mockery and disdain, Rockefeller was furious. He had thought he could persuade Morgan to side with him, but he underestimated Morgan's determination and the profits behind it. If John were to take all these American companies public, the profits for Morgan would be substantial; why would he give up such profits? As for John's desire to expand overseas, what did that have to do with him?

“Morgan, it is precisely because of this that I had to come to you. After the Asian financial crisis, everyone has a lot of funds on hand, and at this time, it is natural to invest these funds. However, with John’s actions, we will lose a lot of benefits. The Europeans have no reason to give them such great benefits and make such sacrifices!”

“Rockefeller, we’ve been friends for a long time. I know exactly what you’re thinking. You’re only after your own interests. If you can do that, why can’t John do it too? If he wants to complete this asset restructuring quickly, an exchange of interests is the best option, just like his exchange of interests with us. If you’re going to focus your energy on John’s plans in Europe, why not focus it on the United States? John will also be restructuring assets here!”

Rockefeller was fully aware of the staggering amount of John's assets in the United States, and that these assets were worth far more than those in Europe. He knew perfectly well that John could share the profits with the Europeans while he himself received nothing. This was one of the fundamental reasons for his anger!

"But such a split, the emergence of one medium-sized conglomerate after another, will increase our pressure. Once such a conglomerate is formed, John will no longer be able to suppress it. Even if we want to target him, it will be useless. He can transfer our pressure at any time. After several years, when these conglomerates stabilize and form a behemoth super conglomerate, you should understand how terrifying his influence will be!"

“Of course I understand, but what good does understanding do? I can’t exactly snipe them, can I? Besides, do you think John might have already prepared for this? I don’t want to walk right into a trap he’s carefully laid. You’ve seen him splitting up, restructuring his assets, and establishing one medium-sized conglomerate after another, gaining regional power. Do you think we can stop this? In Europe, do you think we can fight those guys to the death? Enough is enough. Don’t take their benefits and then try to sabotage their plans. Doing so will invite retaliation. I don’t think Morgan can afford such consequences. You, Rockefeller, have the ability, so you can handle it yourself. I will absolutely not get involved!”

"I don't want to fight John to the death, but many people are tempted, and everyone feels that John's company is going public a bit too slowly. They all want to talk to John about selling those companies now!"

Upon hearing this, Morgan sneered and said, "Heh, so this is your real purpose for coming to see me, isn't it? Unfortunately, you're overthinking it. I have no power to influence John's decision. Being too greedy is not good for anyone, so you need to be careful. Right now, it's not just us watching John; many people are watching him. It's impossible to get John to compromise unless you can offer even greater benefits, or even engage in a direct confrontation with him!"

Morgan was also tempted by John's assets, but he didn't lose his mind because of these benefits and insist on a direct confrontation with John. That would not be good for either of them, as it would bring them immense pressure and even immense danger. John was no 'kind' person. He had risen to his current position in the business world and possessed such power. Who would dare to treat John as someone to be bullied? Who would dare to even think of such a thing?

No amount of profit is as important as one's own life. It is not wise to risk one's life for the sake of profit. John is not an ordinary person, nor is he someone they can bully. Don't think that John is easy to talk to and that this is an opportunity. What is an opportunity in the eyes of others is a disaster, a danger, and a warning in the eyes of Morgan. If you can't see through it, there is only death waiting for you!

(End of this chapter)