2003: Starting with Foreign Trade

Chapter 607 The First Trading Day: Sharing the Joy
"Old Sun, you need to lose that beer belly of yours. You look like you're pregnant."

Sun Yuming has gotten increasingly fat, and he felt a little embarrassed when his boss teased him like that.

He scratched his head awkwardly and said, "Yeah, I need to lose weight. If I don't, I really won't be able to find a girlfriend."

"Take some time to rest and relax. The Tianjin Industrial Zone is now officially in operation, so you can manage your time better. Don't put too much pressure on yourself."

Tan Jincheng nodded in agreement. Since arriving in Tianjin, Sun Yuming had hardly taken any vacation.

In fact, weight gain is not only due to diet. Irregular lifestyle and excessive stress can also easily lead to weight gain. As someone with no management experience, Sun Yuming had to set up and manage a factory, so you can imagine the pressure he faced.

In the past two years, he has hardly slept well. He goes to bed at one or two o'clock in the morning and has to get up normally in the morning. He only gets five or six hours of sleep a day, and his meals are not very regular. He works harder than many people.

“Okay, it’s the off-season now. I’ll arrange my work and then take a good rest,” Sun Yuming said with a smile.

He also felt that he really needed to rest.

"By the way, boss, should we give the employees some kind of benefits for this IPO?"

On New Year's Day, Tan Jincheng called Sun Yuming, Wu Zhenping, Zhang Xuhui and others back to participate in the bell-ringing ceremony for the renaming of FlashTech.

Changfeng Group, which was suspended from trading, will resume trading on Monday, January 5, 2009, which is the first trading day of 2009.

Changfeng Group, which has completed the business registration change, will be officially renamed Shanchi Technology after the resumption of trading, and there will be a small bell-ringing ceremony at the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

Tan Jincheng invited all of his old partners who had started the business together, as well as some of the company's employees, including Xu Xinglei.

Xu Xinglei has been incredibly excited these past few days. He even went out with his wife to buy a suit, something he hadn't done at his wedding. Sun Yuming and the others were also very excited.

Being invited by the boss to participate in the bell-ringing ceremony is a sign of the boss's recognition of them.

"Yes, currently FlashTech alone has a little over 3000 employees. After the IPO, each employee will receive a bonus of 440 yuan."

It's FlashTech's IPO, and it has nothing to do with other branches, so a red envelope of about 150 million yuan is enough. This money was given by Tan Jincheng personally and is not a company expense.

There are no internal documents or publicity, but preparations are underway and the documents will be sent to employees in various locations on the official announcement day.

"Huh? Why is it 440 yuan? What does it mean that it's exactly 440 yuan?"

Zhang Xuhui, standing to the side, was also a little confused. According to his understanding, the boss didn't like even numbers, and the number 4 wasn't particularly auspicious, although people in Yicheng didn't have many taboos about it, and many weddings involved giving a 400 yuan red envelope.

“闪驰科技注册的时间是2005年5月9日，到开盘日正好是44个月，所以选的就是440喽。”

At that time, FlashTech's predecessor was called FlashAuto. In nearly four years, Tan Jincheng led the company to go public and fulfilled the promise made by Beicang City Investment when it invested.

"So that's what it means. No wonder there was such a number." Sun Yuming laughed as well.

Today was a gathering of old friends, and it was at Tan Jincheng's house. These two single guys arrived early, and soon Zhang Xupeng brought Nie Ruoxi, Lin Yumin, and Wu Zhenping's family over, and the house quickly became lively.

The last time they rang the bell was a new experience for them. Apart from Tan Jincheng, Gu Qingqing, and Zhang Xupeng, it was the first time for them. They chattered about what they had heard and heard.

Even the more mature people like Lin Yumin and Wu Zhenping chatted happily like young people.

"I could imagine the company going public, but I never thought we could go public in 2008. We officially went public after three years. The boss really does what he says."

Lin Yumin, who holds the highest position, has the most shares. He owns 0.8% of FlashTech's shares, which is worth about 3200 million yuan based on the market value before the trading halt. Lin Yumin has truly achieved financial freedom.

Like all companies before going public, FlashTech also implemented three methods to give employees certain channels to enjoy the benefits of going public: stock awards, employee equity incentive plans, and stock purchase plans.

The employees' plan to buy the stock was based on the average price of 5.23 yuan, which was the market value of Changfeng Group before the listing. Some employees who did not understand this did not want to buy it before, but now they regret it very much. The stock value doubled in just one month after the resumption of trading.

Due to differing perceptions, not everyone accepts a company issuing stock to its internal employees through purchases; some even believe the company is profiting off its employees.
-
January 5, 2009, Monday, the first trading day of 2009.

FlashTech officially listed on the A-share market at the Shanghai Stock Exchange's restructuring, renaming, and listing ceremony.

"Don't be nervous, just relax. Just think of those people below as big shots. If a reporter asks you a question, just say what you've already prepared in the script. If you don't know what to say, then don't say it."

"Ah, okay, okay."

Xu Xinglei nodded somewhat blankly. His palms were sweaty despite it being the dead of winter. He was very nervous, as this was his first time experiencing such a scene.

Unfortunately, he even bought a suit, but the boss made him wear his work clothes to the bell-ringing ceremony, so it looks like he won't have the chance to wear it.

Besides Xu Xinglei being extremely nervous, Zhao Chuanbing and other outstanding distributors of FlashTech were also incredibly nervous. In addition to inviting grassroots employees to ring the bell, FlashTech also recognized outstanding distributors, user representatives, and outstanding distributor representatives.

This bell-ringing lineup was very popular in 2014, but it was quite unusual in 2009, and the media who came to report on it found it very novel.

"Mr. Tan, it's been a long time. I've had the pleasure of interviewing you a few times, but it seems like you've rarely appeared in public lately." "Hello, Reporter Li, I remember you. Happy New Year to you and to everyone else."

"As for your question, it's actually quite simple. I believe my journalist friends who have interviewed me know that I'm a very straightforward person. According to the China Securities Regulatory Commission's requirements, I can't speak casually or go to random places before listing, so I have to be honest."

"In addition, I have also reminded the employees of Flashpoint Technology to talk less and do more, so as not to cause trouble for the China Securities Regulatory Commission and all shareholders."

The reporters laughed. That was a pretty straightforward answer. The China Securities Regulatory Commission told me not to talk nonsense, so I hid.

"FlashTech's sales have reached number one in the country today. I wonder what changes have occurred since FlashTech went public?"

"There haven't been any major changes. After FlashTech went public, the company's original aspirations and care for its employees remain unchanged. However, what needs to change is to provide better service quality to customers and strive to provide better service to users."

"I noticed that Mr. Tan brought grassroots employees, store owners, and distributor representatives to the bell-ringing ceremony this time, which is different from the listing process of most companies. I wonder what this means."

This is an interesting question, haha: "It doesn't mean anything, it's just that these people have witnessed Flash's growth all along, such as our colleague Xu Xinglei."

He was among the first employees of Flashchip. Back then, we were just a small factory in the Xiapu Industrial Zone, practically a workshop. It was their unwavering support that made Flashchip what it is today. Oh, and he even gave my sister candy once.”

Tan Jincheng pointed to Xu Xinglei, then to Zhao Chuanbing: "This is Mr. Zhao Chuanbing, one of the first batch of terminal store owners of our Shanchi. Back then, even with the option of payment after delivery, not many people dared to sell Shanchi electric vehicles, because we were very grateful for his support at the time."

"And this Mr. Zhang Mingcan, he is an older brother to me and my senior, and is also one of the core suppliers of Flash Technology."

"When Flashpoint Technology was first established, he helped me find the factory space. We didn't have much money back then, and a lot of the equipment was second-hand. He was also the one who helped me make the connections. At that time, my office layout was modeled after his office. To save money, I even moved some of his discarded desks and chairs there."

After finishing his speech in one breath, Tan Jincheng paused for a moment before continuing, "FlashTech has gone public, and I am very happy. I also hope to share this happiness with all our partners, regardless of social class."

Tan Jincheng is known for his fast speaking speed during interviews, and he often argues with people at an extremely fast pace, leaving them no room to retaliate. His passionate and eloquent answers drew rounds of applause from the audience.

What's most touching is that Tan Jincheng remembers every little thing about everyone. The reporters thought it was for the articles, but as an invited representative, he knew that these little things and details wouldn't be in the articles.

Boss Tan truly remembered every detail from the beginning. It was truly rare for a spirited young tycoon to do this, especially Zhang Mingcan, who was extremely excited at this moment.

Not only did Xiao Tan's brother remember all of this, but he also brought him to the bell-ringing ceremony. As a supplier, such an important opportunity to gain exposure has a significant impact on business.

At most, Zhao Chuanbing would just go back and promote his shop to sell a few more electric vehicles. Xu Xinglei would only be more famous in the factory, while Zhao Chuanbing would directly benefit from it.

Tan Jincheng himself acknowledged that FlashTech is a core supplier, and with this reputation, his business may expand rapidly, and he might even have the opportunity to take the company public.

The official bell-ringing was done by Xu Xinglei. Tan Jincheng gave such an opportunity to shine to an unknown grassroots employee, which is rare in the history of A-shares.

At 9:30 a.m., FlashTech, which had already risen for three consecutive days, opened higher and continued to rise, successfully hitting the daily limit at 10:31 a.m., and never opened the limit again.

At the close of trading, FlashTech Technology closed at 11.28 billion yuan, up 10.05%.

After completing its capital increase and share expansion and changing its name, FlashTech has a total market value of 57.528 billion yuan. FlashTech, the first electric vehicle stock, has officially landed on the A-share market, and news of its market value approaching 60 billion yuan has quickly spread across the internet.

According to the previous announcement regarding the backdoor listing through Changfeng Group, after the company's private placement is completed, the largest shareholder will become Yongcheng Julang Engine Investment Co., Ltd., holding 49.79% of the shares.

The last five shareholders are Xiangcheng City Investment Co., Ltd., Beicang City Investment Co., Ltd., National Social Security Fund, Qilu Securities Co., Ltd., and Sequoia Global Fund (specific asset management).

They are all large investment institutions, a truly impressive lineup.

According to business registration information, the largest shareholder of ByteDance's advertising platform is Cheng Yue (BVI) Limited, holding 94% of the shares. The actual controller of Cheng Yue is Tan Jincheng, who wholly owns 100% of Cheng Yue's shares.

Based on today's closing market capitalization, the founder of FlashTech actually holds shares in FlashTech worth 26.92 billion yuan.

It was another feast for capital. Zhou Kai, the CEO of Xiangcheng City Investment, was in a very good mood after the market closed. The market value of their holdings in Flash Technology reached 4.31 million yuan after the market closed today.

Including the cash previously given, the actual value is already close to the market value of the shares held by Changfeng Group before the trading suspension.

"The shares of a company that was on the verge of bankruptcy were sold for the same value as high-quality assets in less than six months. Mr. Zhou did a good job with this deal."

At this moment, Zhou Kai's mind was still replaying the phone call praising him, and he was feeling a little smug.

The only one who was a little frustrated was Li Jianxin. Tan Jincheng offered him 2.75 million yuan to sell him all the assets in Yongzhou that originally belonged to Changfeng Group. To be honest, it wasn't expensive at all, and he was indeed very tempted.

But this number seems to be mocking him.

“I really didn’t mean that. I was just thinking that Yangzi Motors had spent 2.75 million yuan, and I wanted to get that investment back. If you’re not comfortable with that, Mr. Li, you can add a little more, 2.8 million is fine too.”

At that moment, Li Jianxin really wanted to yell, "You little brat, why don't you lower your price a bit?"

(End of this chapter)