America: My Time

Chapter 421 Standard Chartered Move
Chapter 421 Standard Chartered Transfer

Standard Chartered has changed hands. Pacific Investment Management Co., Ltd. officially announced the completion of its acquisition of Standard Chartered Bank. As soon as Pacific Investment Management Co., Ltd. made the announcement, the entire Hong Kong and the United States were shaken. Although those guys on Wall Street had thought that John's target was Standard Chartered, they did not expect it to happen so quickly, and that the British would fall so quickly!
Standard Chartered Bank is about to be delisted. When all the shares are concentrated in the hands of an offshore company, and that company merges with Pacific Investment, Standard Chartered Bank's delisting will naturally enter its final stage. Now there are not many shares left on the market, and Pacific Investment will not have to pay too much of a price.

At this point, the Wall Street guys finally understood why John's vast sums of money had disappeared—it was all for this day. Now that John's biggest problem was solved, and with Standard Chartered Bank under their control, the weakest link in the conglomerate was filled. Because Standard Chartered Bank wasn't a US bank, those old fogies were even more wary, meaning they could no longer restrict John's development; John's overseas network was now complete.

Taking advantage of the Plaza Accord, John swiftly took down Standard Chartered and dealt a blow to HSBC. This result shocked and unsettled the giants of Wall Street, especially Lehman Brothers. This time, John was a cunning fox targeting Standard Chartered; what would have happened if he had targeted Lehman Brothers instead?
This wasn't a plan laid out overnight, but rather over several years. After Standard Chartered's change of ownership, the Japanese were shocked, especially the Japanese banks. After taking over Standard Chartered, they wondered if they could still get more loans from John. The Japanese bigwigs also had to think about how to deal with John, because now that the weakest link in the other party's business had been filled, it was the last thing they wanted to see. With Standard Chartered, how much more profit could they expect to get from John?

At this point, some people forgot that John wasn't just shorting the dollar, but also going long on the yen. The yen's appreciation would bring John even greater profits. Meanwhile, Japanese banks were worried that John might repay their loans early, causing them to lose even more profits.

If many Japanese guys still thought they had an advantage in terms of funding, they no longer do. After the Plaza Accord, John was flush with cash. This time, John's apparent wealth shocked them. At this point, the Wall Street giants finally understood why John had released shares in the game world—it was all for the Plaza Accord.

The appreciation of the yen and the depreciation of the dollar were a foregone conclusion, and no one could stop this inevitable trend. After the Plaza Accord, some were happy and some were worried. When they saw John's amazing gains, the old guys like Rockefeller couldn't help but feel a headache. They were afraid. Although the depreciation of the dollar and the appreciation of the yen were the results they had hoped for, they did not want to see John's victory.

"John, congratulations! This financial investment has yielded such amazing returns, and you've even secured Standard Chartered Bank. Now many banks are worried; they're afraid you'll repay your loans early. I'm here to see you at their request. I have to admit that with a hundredfold leverage, your returns are the envy of many. Just one trade in Japanese yen has generated profits that many conglomerates can't earn in a year. It's incredibly lucrative!" At this point, Akio Morita couldn't help but sigh, marveling at the success of John's investment company in Japan.

"Financial investment is not as simple as you think. You only see our investment success, but you don't see the investment I made. Moreover, such financial investments can lead to bankruptcy with the slightest mistake. Before I acted, those financial institutions were aware of it, but they did not choose to follow suit because they were afraid that if such an investment went wrong, the consequences would be severe. I can only say that I was lucky, otherwise I would not have been able to hold on for long, even though I made many preparations in advance and kept increasing the margin, I still faced the danger of collapse several times."

John was absolutely right. Although he knew the Plaza Accord was coming, he had made ample preparations in terms of margin in this investment, repeatedly adding margin to stabilize his position. Without sufficient funds, he wouldn't have seen this moment of victory. The financial market is volatile; the slightest carelessness can wipe out everything. Therefore, John was under unimaginable pressure.

“That’s true. Many people in Japan know you’re going long on the yen, but no one is following suit. It just goes to show how dangerous the financial market is. But what are your thoughts on the repayment? Do you really intend to repay the loans from the major banks ahead of schedule?” At this point, Akio Morita continued to ask, determined not to give up until he got his answer.

"No, I won't choose to repay the loan early at this time. I've obtained the lowest interest rate loans from various banks, and all the companies are operating very stably. There's no need to repay the loan early at this time. You can tell them this and put their minds at ease."

Early repayment of the loan? Dream on! That would be giving these guys free money. The dollar is constantly depreciating; how could he possibly repay the loan early? That income would just keep flowing into the appreciation of the yen. John had no intention of continuing to bet on the dollar. Although the dollar would continue to depreciate, the income from the yen's appreciation was far greater. After the Plaza Accord, the yen's appreciation was breathtaking. As soon as Lehman Brothers and HSBC bowed down, John would quickly end his short position on the dollar and shift his funds to going long on the yen.

By this time, the funds hidden in the shadows had already begun to close their positions. After closing their dollar orders, they turned to going long on the yen, having no energy or time to waste on shorting the dollar.

"That's good. With your words, they can rest assured. However, John, this battle will attract a lot of media attention. Many people want to hear your views on the current exchange rate. Even some universities in Japan are interested in inviting you to give a speech!"

"I don't have that kind of ability. This success was just an accident. I didn't expect such a change, nor did I expect the finance ministers of five countries to come forward together. I certainly didn't expect their actions to be so astonishing. Originally, I made the decision based on the trade between the United States and Japan. As you know, the trade deficit between Japan and the United States is getting bigger and bigger. Under such circumstances, the United States will not sit idly by. Raising tariffs would be a foolish decision. The best way is to adjust the exchange rate. So I believed that the dollar would depreciate and the yen would appreciate. However, I myself was not absolutely certain, so I did not dare to put all my funds together and not completely short the dollar. Half of my funds were used to go long on the yen, just in case I was worried that I would fail. Now it seems that the worst situation has not occurred."

Akio Morita accepted John's explanation, believing it to be John's most genuine thought. He reasoned that John made this choice because he understood the size of the trade deficit between Japan and the United States, and that he could see through the White House's plan and Japan's reaction, which led him to make this financial investment.

Many people say that Japan was forced to appreciate the yen and that the bubble economy in Japan was caused by the United States. But that's not entirely true. The Plaza Accord involved five countries, so why did only Japan fall into crisis a few years later? It can only be said that Japan mishandled the situation, and of course, Japan also had its own ideas.

"John, what are your thoughts on Japan's development now? Will the depreciation of the US dollar and the appreciation of the yen affect Japan's economy?"

"The impact is natural; any exchange rate change will affect trade, it's just a matter of degree. However, I am still optimistic about Japan's economic development because Japanese employees are much better than those in the United States. Their dedication is something that American employees cannot match. Therefore, I am still optimistic about Japan's economic development and will continue to invest in Japan."

This is just the beginning of a bubble era; the collapse of the Japanese economy is still a long way off. Although the yen is appreciating, Japan remains a worthwhile investment until the end of the year, so John will not stop investing because of the Plaza Accord. Real estate expansion will continue, especially in commercial real estate, as it is the easiest to sell.

Upon hearing John's words, Akio Morita breathed a sigh of relief. If John had expressed pessimism about the Japanese economy at this moment, he would have needed to be cautious. After all, John's performance in this battle had shocked everyone, and for a long time, no one doubted John's foresight. If John had stood up and made a statement at this time, it would have caused turmoil in the financial markets. Currently, many in the financial industry are studying John and Hurricane Investment.

This is why so many universities wanted to invite John to speak; they all wanted to know his true thoughts, his reasoning on shorting the dollar and going long on the yen, and his views on the US and Japanese economies. Unfortunately, John declined their invitations. Not only was he turned down from Japan, but he also declined invitations from numerous US universities. John didn't want to be in the limelight. His previous large-scale investments had already attracted the attention of some, and further attention would cause him serious trouble. John didn't want to become the focus of everyone's attention, and even less did he want to be targeted by financial institutions, affecting his future financial strategies and plans!
(End of this chapter)