Return to 1958 and build a century-old giant

Chapter 932 Land Acquired
Time flew by and it was mid-April. The shareholders' meeting of Jardine Matheson Group was also held at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel.

Inside a Mercedes-Benz parked outside the hotel, Yang Wendong and Yang Zhiwen were looking at documents in the back seat: "It's finally starting, Zhiwen. This is your first time attending a shareholders' meeting of a large listed company. Take your time to observe and learn."

"Yes, Daddy," Yang Zhiwen replied.

"Old Fang, is everything ready?" Yang Wendong asked, looking at Fang Xianming in the passenger seat.
Fang Xianming replied, "Don't worry, Mr. Yang. Niu Bijian has already spoken to many of the shareholders of the Land Group, and I have also contacted some overseas. Some of them have sold some of their shares to us."

Some will also stand by our side; after all, you have a good reputation, and they still trust you.

“Alright, although the Keswick family doesn’t hold a large stake, they have controlled Jardine Matheson for a century and have a complex network of relationships, so we still need to be fully prepared,” Yang Wendong nodded and said.
These large families that have existed for over a century should not be underestimated;

If it weren't for the advent of the electronic and internet age, these family conglomerates would have almost controlled global wealth, leaving little opportunity for newcomers.

Fang Xianming said, "Yes, shall we go in first?"

Yang Wendong shook his head and said, "No need. Just send someone in and report what happened. We'll go in when needed."

“Okay, Mr. Yang,” Fang Xianming replied.

Inside a large conference hall at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel,
Niu Bijian glanced at Simon Keswick, who seemed full of confidence, and sneered inwardly: "Let's see if you can still laugh when Jardine Matheson changes its name."

Inside the conference hall, hundreds of people had already arrived. Those who could participate in this meeting were all shareholders who owned a certain number of shares in Jardine Matheson or Hongkong Land; ordinary shareholders could not get in.

In addition, there were some senior executives of the company, media reporters, and so on. The shareholders' meeting of the First British-owned trading company in Hong Kong, plus everyone knowing about the Keswick family's schemes, was enough to become a breaking news story for the Hong Kong media.

Bobby asked with some concern, "Niu Bijian, Simon Keswick is not here with good intentions. Our first quarter financial report was very bad. I'm worried that many shareholders will not be on our side."

“Don’t worry, I have made preparations.” Niu Bijian glanced at Bao Fuda and said confidently;
His collaboration with Yang Wendong was a top secret; even Bao Fuda only knew that he seemed to have found the help of a certain consortium.

However, he might also guess that it was Yang Wendong, which is beyond his control.
“Okay,” Bobby reminded him, “it’s about to begin.”

Soon, the shareholders' meeting officially began. As the CEO, Niu Bijian naturally gave a speech on the main stage. The first thing he did was to report on the financials of the previous quarter.

"The quarterly loss was HK$2.6 million, and the total liabilities of Jardine Matheson and Hongkong Land amounted to HK$212 billion."

When this figure came out, everyone was shocked. The debt was more than 200 billion, which was equivalent to almost a year's fiscal revenue of the Hong Kong government.
Simon Keswick said coldly, "Niu Bijian, when you took over Jardine Matheson, Jardine Matheson had an annual profit of HK$3 million and a debt of less than HK$50 billion."
"In just a few years, the entire group has become like this. You should take full responsibility and resign."

“The reason this situation has occurred is because of Hong Kong’s economic crisis, and this economic crisis itself was not caused by Hong Kong itself. Who can avoid such a thing?” Niu Bijian questioned in return.

Simon Keswick retorted, "What a joke! It's the same financial crisis, so why don't Hutchison Whampoa and Swire have much debt? In the end, it's because you were too greedy and reckless that led to Hongkong Land's huge debt today."

Of the four major trading companies in Hong Kong, there was also Wheelock.

However, Wheelock is similar to Jardine Matheson in that it is heavily indebted. It is somewhat similar to Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL) in that it suffered a disastrous outcome due to its previous stockpiling of ships.

“I was indeed a bit too ambitious, but Jardine Matheson and Hongkong Land are now much larger than the Jardine Matheson Group was before,” Niu Bijian said. “The economic crisis will always pass. As long as we get through it, the Jardine Matheson Group will definitely grow to a higher level in the future, thanks to the large amount of property assets I acquired in the early days.”

Simon Keswick countered, "The economic crisis will indeed pass, but with such heavy debt, the company's cash flow is insufficient. How do you plan to solve this problem?"

Niu Bijian glanced at Simon Keswick and said, "There's no other way in terms of business direction. So, I plan to raise funds through a share issuance for Hongkong Land, which has the heaviest debt, to attract more external capital. If we can just hold on for another year or two, I believe Hong Kong's economy will return to normal."

"Another round of share issuance?" Simon Keswick asked. "The stock price of Hongkong Land has fallen very sharply. Raising funds at this time would be irresponsible to all the shareholders present."

“That’s perfect. If anyone no longer wants to hold Hongkong Land’s shares, they can sell them at the same time. I’ve already found a potential buyer,” Niu Bijian said calmly.

Simon Keswick frowned and asked, "The new buyer, who?"

“The richest man in Asia,” Niu Bijian said with a smile. “Yang Wendong of Changxing Group will become the new major shareholder of Zhidi.”

"You're inviting a wolf into the house." Simon Keswick's expression changed drastically.

He naturally understood that Yang Wendong had started cooperating with Niu Bijian after failing to reach an agreement with him.

At this moment, he also felt a little regretful. He had been too greedy, thinking that he could slowly solve the debt problem after acquiring Jardine Matheson, instead of cooperating with Yang Wendong.

For Jardine Matheson, Jardine Land is too important. If he loses Jardine Land, he will not be able to explain it to his family. After all, he is just one of the members of the Keswick family.

Obviously, Niu Bijian didn't have this concern. Their natural positions were different, so their choices regarding the same thing were also different.
Niu Bijian said, "It would be good if we could save Jardine Matheson, and at the same time, Mr. Yang can also guarantee the interests of all shareholders."

He deliberately spoke the second half of the sentence loudly into the microphone to inform the other shareholders;

Simon Keswick quickly replied into his microphone, "No need. My Keswick family still has some funds that can help Landsea solve its current problems."

Niu Bijian smiled and said, "Then it's up to the shareholders to decide. By the way, let's invite Mr. Yang now."

Everything was ready. Just as Niu Bijian finished speaking, the doors to the conference hall opened, revealing Yang Wendong, Yang Zhiwen, Fang Xianming, and others. "Mr. Yang," many shareholders and reporters stood up.

Yang Wendong's name is so big in Hong Kong that they acted subconsciously.
After Yang Wendong entered the venue with the people behind him, the people in the venue had already prepared seats for them. However, Yang Wendong walked up to the stage, and a foreigner quickly gave up his seat.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I don't need to introduce myself." Yang Wendong glanced at the people below and then at Simon Keswick, and said loudly, "What Mr. Niu Bijian just said is also my idea. I can inject HK$50 billion into Hong Kong Land Group."
With this funding, Hongkong Land can weather this economic crisis, and the dozens of projects that have been suspended will also have the funds to restart, thus allowing the entire company to return to normal.

"HK$50 billion!" Many people gasped upon hearing this.
They naturally knew that Yang Wendong's net worth far exceeded 50 billion, but the fact that he could come up with 50 billion Hong Kong dollars in one go was terrifying.

Let alone Hong Kong, even some conglomerates in Europe, America, and Japan would probably find it difficult to come up with such a large amount of funds.
Simon Keswick's face turned ashen. Although his family had some secrets, they couldn't come up with HK$50 billion. Then he thought of something and said, "Mr. Yang, you are a major shareholder of Hang Seng Bank, which is also one of Hongkong Land's creditor banks. According to Hong Kong law, you cannot become a major shareholder of Hongkong Land."

Hong Kong's banking laws have been gradually improved in recent years. It's not that the Hong Kong government has become more responsible, but rather that it is terrified of financial runs, so it has no choice but to regulate the financial sector and abandon its former "free market" policy.

Yang Wendong smiled and said, "That's no problem. After I become a shareholder of Hongkong Land, I will arrange for Hang Seng Bank to package and sell all of Hongkong Land's debts to other banks. There is a three-month execution period for this under the law."

This was actually an agreement between him and Sumitomo Bank;

Sumitomo Bank was already having some headaches about the loan to JKJ Land and was worried that it would not be able to recover it. After Fang Xianming contacted them, an agreement was reached.
Sumitomo Bank, acting as a Japanese bank, will take drastic measures against Jardine Matheson. Once Yang Wendong succeeds, the Jardine Matheson loan business held by Hang Seng Bank will be transferred to Sumitomo Bank.

Before Yang Wendong's investment, Hongkong Land's debt was risky, but after Yang Wendong's investment, Sumitomo Bank naturally realized that this was a high-quality financial asset.
Meanwhile, Yang Wendong's financial and real estate companies are now preparing to make large-scale investments in Japanese real estate and will also cooperate with Sumitomo Bank.

Simon Keswick frowned and said, "I think it's best if we resolve the issue of Landmark internally. My Keswick family is capable of rescuing Landmark Group."

"Mr. Keswick, how many shares of Landmark Group do you own?" Niu Bijian suddenly asked.

Simon Keswick paused, realizing he didn't own any shares in Landmark Group;
The Keswick family controlled Jardine Matheson through their own family control, and Jardine Matheson then controlled Hongkong Land and Wharf Holdings, thus achieving control of a huge top conglomerate with very few assets.

The advantage of doing this is that the whole family can leech off the conglomerate. But if you really want to investigate, he has no right to influence the decisions of Jardine Matheson, unless he first obtains the management rights of Jardine Matheson. But right now, the management rights of Jardine Matheson are still in Niu Bijian's hands.
As a shareholder of Jardine Matheson, he has the right to express his opinion on Jardine Matheson's affairs, but Hongkong Land, strictly speaking, has nothing to do with him.

But he couldn't back down now, so he said, "I am a shareholder of Jardine Matheson, and Jardine Matheson is also a major shareholder of Hongkong Land."

Yang Wendong then said, "Jardine Matheson Group and Hongkong Land Group hold shares in each other. There is no provision in the law for cross-shareholding voting rights under this model. I wonder, Mr. Niu Bijian, do you think it's acceptable?"

Niu Bijian's expression changed, and he immediately realized that this was a trap;
If he does not agree to this voting right, then Jardine Land will not have voting rights among its shareholders, and he will not be qualified to interfere with Jardine Land's shareholders' meeting. In that case, Yang Wendong will surely succeed in controlling Jardine Land.
Conversely, if he agrees, then Niu Bijian will have almost the final say. In addition, if Yang Wendong can resolve the debt, then not only Jardine Matheson, but probably Jardine Matheson will also be swallowed up by Yang Wendong.

He then looked at Niu Bijian and asked in a cold voice, "Are you really planning to destroy the Jardine Matheson Group by doing this?"

“Mr. Keswick, you flatter me. I’m only trying to save the Jardine Matheson Group.” Niu Bijian said with a faint smile, “If the Keswick family is not satisfied, they can withdraw their shares. After all, you only have 10% of the shares.”

Yang Wendong said, "Let's see the votes of the other shareholders first. The voting results under Yizhi Mutual Control are still controversial from a legal perspective."

When the mutual control scheme of Yizhi emerged, the Hong Kong media reported on it extensively. It was clearly a scheme of controlling oneself, and anyone could do it in the future. In this way, one could control a large company with very few shares.
However, the Hong Kong government clearly favored Jardine Matheson, and since it was a civil dispute, there was no internal opposition from Jardine Matheson, so the matter was dropped.

After Keswick returned, he used his status as a Jardine Matheson shareholder to prevent the cross-voting rights of Jardine Estates, his original intention being to dismantle Niu Bijian's plan.

However, the Hong Kong government and the Supreme Court have not yet issued an order, so the situation is rather complicated.

Simon Keswick agreed, saying, "Then let's see who the shareholders of Jardine Matheson choose. I believe that the right decision will be made by the shareholders of Jardine Matheson."

“Alright, all the arguments are meaningless in the face of the shareholders’ meeting results,” Yang Wendong nodded and said.
The current wrangling is simply to let the shareholders present understand the specific situation.

Niu Bijian said, "Okay, let's now hold a shareholders' vote. Those who support Mr. Yang Wendong's investment in Hongkong Land, please tick the box on your equity statement. The Hong Kong Stock Exchange commissioner will confirm it later."

Although the shareholders' meeting is a corporate event, the government also participates, especially in the voting process, in order to prevent major shareholders or management from changing the voting results.

More than an hour later, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange commissioner also tallied the results and said: "Ladies and gentlemen, excluding the shares of Hongkong Land controlled by Jardine Matheson, the other 57% of shareholders agree to Mr. Yang Wendong's investment."

“It seems that the mutual control of Yizhi is no longer important.” Yang Wendong looked at Simon Keswick and asked, “What does Mr. Keswick think?”

“That’s impossible. Most of Hongkong Land’s shareholders are British. Why would they help you?” Simon Keswick was clearly skeptical.

In his struggle with Niu Bijian, it was unclear who the British would side with, but in his fight with Yang Wendong, he couldn't understand why he had lost.

Yang Wendong laughed and said, "Mr. Keswick, what era are we living in? Do you still think that the British will always help the British? Whether it's Hong Kong, Britain, or anywhere else, everyone is ultimately looking at their own interests."

I can guarantee the interests of Hongkong Land's shareholders, and that's enough.

“Alright, in that case, I will buy back the shares of Jardine Matheson held by Hongkong Land.” Simon Keswick also understood that the situation was hopeless, and at least Hongkong Land could not be saved.
Even with Yang Wendong's immense wealth and Niu Bijian's cooperation, he couldn't fight against him.

“It’s too late, I’m not selling.” Yang Wendong said with a faint smile, “I discussed it with Niu Bijian and we decided not to directly invest in Jardine Matheson, but to buy shares of Jardine Matheson’s subsidiary, Jardine Matheson. In this way, the Jardine Matheson cross-control will be dissolved.”
And I've become a major shareholder of Jardine Matheson, so you no longer have a chance.

"What? You want to take over Jardine Matheson too?" Simon Keswick said angrily. "Many of Jardine Matheson's overseas businesses are backed by the British Empire. They are not something you can easily control."

“I’m too lazy to deal with Jardine Matheson’s overseas operations.” Yang Wendong then said, “Niu Bijian, you should inform Mr. Keswick about this matter.”

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(End of this chapter)