America's No. 1 financial conglomerate

Chapter 574 Each Has Their Own Path

A more exciting life?

To trample the five major families underfoot?

Reggie didn't dare to think about it.

His greatest wish in life was to become a godfather, especially for an Italian, it was like an innate genetic code.

"But... do those two business deals that guy put me in really have a future?" Reggie wanted to say Ernst, but he swallowed the words back.

Since Craig communicated with him on everything, he knew very well that Ernst didn't want to have any dealings with him, at least not for now.

As someone who built up a vast territory and became one of the biggest gangs in New York in less than twenty years, Reggie wasn't stupid, and he knew exactly how to be cautious.

"That's a symbol of wealth, the son of Jesus." Craig leaned back on the leather sofa, his face full of certainty. "Reggie, you should thank your father, whom you've never met. If it weren't for his whim back then, how could your mother have conceived you, and how could you have been so lucky, guided by God?"

"But I've heard that you don't make much money in the private prison business," Reggie said, still frowning as he voiced his concerns.

He was no stranger to the prison business, not because he had done it himself, but because his brothers had been in and out of prison so many times that he had become very familiar with how the industry operated.

The private prison industry began in the 80s and has only been developing for a little over a decade. At that time, American society was experiencing unprecedented turmoil, with the gap between the rich and poor widening due to urbanization, soaring street crime rates, and rampant drug trafficking, leading to overcrowded public prisons.

To alleviate financial pressure, state governments had to open up some of the authority to operate prisons to private capital, which led to the rise of private prisons.

According to the agreement between the federal and state governments, the federal and state governments will settle accounts with prisons based on the number of prisoners and the number of days they are incarcerated. The cost of each prison varies due to geographical location and cost factors.

In New York State, for example, due to its location in the economic heartland, operating costs are high, and the average daily allowance for each prisoner is as high as $40.

Behind the seemingly impressive figures, after deducting operating costs such as prison site rental, security personnel salaries, food supply, and medical care, each prisoner can only bring a net profit of between $5 and $8 per day to the prison.

Even at the highest estimate of $8, a large prison that can hold 300 prisoners would only generate a net profit of $2400 per day, $7.2 per month, and approximately $86.4 per year.

That sounds pretty good, over $800,000 a year.

In reality, not a single penny was left.

Because the revenue of private prisons is entirely in the hands of the government.

The number of prisoners directly determines the prison's revenue, and the availability of a stable source of prisoners depends entirely on the government's support.

From state legislators to officials at the Bureau of Prisons, every link in the chain requires bribes, and even $800,000 might not be enough to cover those bribes.

The real profit of private prisons doesn't come from government subsidies, but from the monopolistic services offered to prisoners. This is why capital is willing to enter the market. Public telephones, convenience stores, paid medical services, and upgraded accommodations within prisons are all sure-fire ways to make money.

As long as you're willing to pay, wealthy people can enjoy all the services available in prison.

If they wanted, they could even bring Hollywood actresses into the prison for a sex party.

Of course, wealthy people who manage to do such things generally don't end up in jail.

In lucky months, these gray services alone can bring in tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of dollars.

"You know nothing!" Craig suddenly raised his voice, mimicking the tone Ernst had used to scold him a few hours earlier.

He asked the same stupid question when he first heard the proposal.

"Would he even care about such paltry gains?" He leaned forward, explaining, "What he truly values ​​is the endless supply of free labor in the prison!"

"Think about it, once companies like Flashbuy and AI Technology partner with you, and have prisoners perform simple assembly, packaging, and data entry jobs, isn't that equivalent to having a group of workers who don't need to pay social security or adhere to minimum wage standards creating wealth for you every day?"

Reggie's eyes instantly lit up like stars, and his mouth involuntarily opened wide in surprise and excitement. His expression was contradictory yet comical.

"Yeah, why didn't anyone think of that?" he said after regaining his senses.

Is this the embodiment of wealth? Is this the allure of the legendary Son of God?

How come they always manage to find gold mines and come up with ideas to make big money?

In 1998, the federal minimum wage was $5.15 per hour, but there was one group of people who were excluded from this range: prisoners.

Salary?

However, there is no law that stipulates that prisoners must be paid wages for working.

Even if the partner company significantly reduces the salary, to only $2 per hour, that's $20 for ten hours a day.

Three hundred prisoners would cost six thousand dollars a day, which would amount to $18 a month.

This is just one prison; what if we could open prisons all over America?

This is an incredible fortune; Reggie can't even imagine it.

Of course, these profits must be shared, but if the pie gets bigger, we can definitely change our approach.

Send money?

That's too cliché. The key issue is that it's too large-scale and too dangerous.

Your competitors might be watching you closely, planning to deliver a fatal blow.

Is it possible to invest in it?

Let's bring all of you in, and then we'll go public.

They not only want to seize the assets of criminals, but also the wallets of ordinary people.

"What about garbage recycling?" Reggie asked eagerly about his second business opportunity.

"Garbage recycling is garbage recycling, but you should pay special attention to one thing: the recycling of household appliances and electronic products."

"That guy said that if you could monopolize this business, becoming a billionaire wouldn't be a problem." Craig said this with a hint of envy.

However, he knew that as long as he clung to Ernst's coattails, he would definitely not fare badly in the future.

Patting the other man on the shoulder, Craig suppressed a laugh and said, "When the time comes, no matter which media outlet mentions you, they'll all call you the Garbage King."

Garbage King?

Reggie looked displeased, clearly not fond of the title. However, he quickly forgot about it; his mind was now filled with thoughts of being a billionaire.

Not to mention him, even his younger brother, who had been too shy to speak, was parched and immediately grabbed the wine bottle, downing half a bottle of red wine in one gulp.

If someone else had told him this, he would have punched them right away.

In the United States, electronic appliance recycling is paid.

It's not that the junk collector gives you money, but rather that you have to pay the junk collector.

Because these products contain substances such as lead, mercury, and cadmium, which are classified as hazardous waste, they are prohibited from being sent to ordinary landfills and incinerated. Violators can be fined up to $2.5 per product.

Ordinary residents are also not allowed to discard them directly, otherwise they will also face hefty fines.

Therefore, in the United States, it is common to see many people leaving electronic products and home appliances at their doorsteps, so anyone who wants them can simply take them.

This way they can save twenty or thirty dollars in disposal fees and avoid having to drive to a special landfill.

Although it's a potentially lucrative industry, its target audience is quite small.

However, after experiencing the prison operation ideas just now, the two brothers now feel that this industry definitely has great potential, and they are convinced of this.

Craig wasn't lying to the two; it really was a huge business that could make them hundreds of millions. The reason no one was paying attention to this industry right now was because the iteration of home appliances hadn't taken off yet, and electronic products were even scarcer.

The industry truly began to boom when China joined the WTO, leading to a significant drop in the prices of many home appliances and a wave of appliance replacements among Americans.

Later, with the advent of smartphones, various electronic products became the mainstream.

When it comes to the prison business, Ernst's main interest is cheap labor.

So what this waste recycling company needs is a cheap supply of raw materials.

Before anyone could react, we launched this product and, through secondary refinement, increased our cost advantage.

To become a truly great family, one must know how to let go, allowing family relationships to intertwine like a towering tree.

What about the Rockefeller family?

Back in the day, didn't Standard Oil also lead a group of smaller companies to conquer the world?

Morgan did the same, forming the financial alliance of his time.

The reason why conglomerates are called conglomerates, rather than families, is because of the intricate web of interests involved.

If Ernst wants to build a Garfield conglomerate, he needs many underlings, including people like Reggie who operate in the gray area. They need someone who can provide you with endless wealth on one hand and control the power to destroy you instantly on the other.

This is the most stable form of control.