Return to 1958 and build a century-old giant

Chapter 938 Buying at the Bottom of Eastern Europe
British state-owned enterprises have been losing money for years, but the root cause is the bloated management of state-owned enterprises, coupled with the impact of factors such as the oil crisis.

If it is privatized and managed by private capital, while dealing with issues that state-owned enterprises cannot handle, such as a large number of employees, the possibility of achieving profitability again is still very high.
After all, private enterprises don't need to shoulder much social responsibility; if they only seek profit, it's quite easy for them. For example, power companies can simply not build power lines in some remote towns.
This is also why many industries related to people's livelihoods in mainland China were kept state-owned in the past.

His main purpose in coming here this time is to acquire several companies that he can control. He can also invest in some stocks of other state-owned enterprises. In terms of economic value, they may not be as valuable as Hong Kong and the mainland in the future, but he will not put all his eggs in one basket.

For at least the next four or five decades, Western countries will still control the global landscape, and their industries here will be profitable and have a huge influence.

The specific details of the cooperation were naturally left to his professional team, but he still arranged for his son to be involved as well.
As the future successor, Yang Wendong also needs him to be involved in some things personally. In the early stages, he only needs to follow and learn. After a few years, he can be allowed to make decisions on his own and try some small and medium-sized project development or mergers and acquisitions, etc.
Today, cultivating a suitable successor for the group is more important than making money itself. This is about family inheritance, just like in ancient dynasties, where emperors had to start grooming their crown princes after reaching middle age.

After spending a few more days in England, Yang Wendong left alone and went to Germany. The matter in England was of great importance and could not be resolved in a short time, and he did not need to spend too much time there.
Upon arriving in Germany, the first place he visited was naturally the Deutsche Reichsbank, with which he had a long-term cooperative relationship. The bank's vice president, Klaus, personally received him.
“Mr. Yang, welcome to the Deutsche Reichsbank.” Klaus waited at the entrance of the bank’s headquarters building.

Yang Wendong smiled and shook hands, saying, "Klaus, long time no see. How have you been?"

"I'm doing great, both in terms of health and business. I have to thank you for choosing our bank as KFC's IPO advisor," Klaus said with a smile.

Yang Wendong said, "It's nothing. If any of my other companies go public in the future, I will give priority to your bank."

KFC went public earlier this year. Although it was listed in the United States, Deutsche Bank also has a branch in the United States and participated in the IPO.

This is mainly because I need a strong financial ally in Europe to facilitate my investments there.

Although he had a good relationship with Standard Chartered, Standard Chartered's headquarters are in the UK, and its core business is actually in Asia and Africa. It is the type of bank headquartered in Europe but whose main business is not there.

The Deutsche Bank is a suitable partner. Germany has the strongest influence over its neighbors in Europe, and the two countries have cooperated many times before. In addition, the Deutsche Bank has been trying to enter the US and Asian markets, and it would need Yang Wendong's help in this regard. Therefore, the cooperation between the two parties can be considered a win-win situation.

"Haha, this is the best news I've heard all year," Klaus said with a laugh. "Let's go up."

Many of Yang Wendong's unlisted companies are huge targets for investment banks in Europe and America. These companies, which have risen to prominence after a long period of low-key development, are huge in scale and very successful in their operations. They have a strong monopoly or dominant position in various fields, and once they go public, their IPOs are very successful.

"Okay." Yang Wendong nodded, and the group went to the top floor of the building.

Klaus handed over a cup of coffee and said, "In Germany, unlike in the United States, we don't really pursue height in our buildings, and the same goes for residential buildings."

Yang Wendong laughed and said, "I understand. This is what they like in Europe. I've been to Italy a few times, and there are practically no modern skyscrapers there."

Anyone who has been to Europe knows that the architectural style there is completely different from that of Asia and America, and many buildings still retain a medieval style.

Klaus continued, "Eric, you entrusted us with acquiring car retail stores across Europe, and there has been some recent progress. One retail store covering Eastern Europe has decided to sell, bringing the total to over 300 stores."

"More than 300, that's quite a lot!" Yang Wendong asked with some surprise, "Why are they selling?"

It's worth noting that Yang Wendong has been working around the world for almost ten years, but he only has a little over 2000 car retail stores.

This is not just a matter of money; many cities are already saturated.

It's a bit better in Asia, in cities with economic development. You can just go there and invest directly. Although there are some localization issues, as long as you maintain good relationships with the local government and a few wealthy individuals, there shouldn't be any major problems with expansion.

However, the situation is different in Europe and America. The automotive industry there developed very early and the economy is very good. Various cities have had car dealerships for a long time, and some may even have exclusive rights. Even if Yang Wendong has money, he cannot build new ones and can only take the measure of acquisition.

This led to slow progress. You have to understand that car retail is a capital-intensive industry, and the car business is generally very stable. People in this industry are generally not short of money. It was only the oil crisis a few years ago that gave him the opportunity to acquire some in Europe and the United States.

A company that owns 300 chain stores must have a considerable amount of capital behind it, and such companies generally do not intend to sell.

Klaus said helplessly, "You should know about the Polar Bear military exercises a couple of years ago, right?"

"Military exercises? You mean Eastern Europe is worried about a political crisis and wants to sell off its assets?" Yang Wendong immediately understood;
What affects the economy more than an economic crisis is politics; once politics erupts, everything is lost.

There were also some people in Hong Kong who were worried, which led to a crisis in the real estate and stock markets, and even the Hong Kong dollar exchange rate almost collapsed. This was only the result of the concerns of a small group of people.

Klaus nodded and said, "Yes, that's the reason. It's not just one Eastern European company; many Eastern European companies are now planning to relocate. Many Western European companies are also hesitant to invest in Eastern Europe because they're worried."

So you also need to think this through. Right now, the price is very cheap, but if a political crisis really breaks out, then…

Yang Wendong thought for a moment and asked, "The military exercises have been going on for several years now, why are you worried now?"

Klaus said, "In the past year, oil prices have fallen, the polar bear's foreign exchange earnings have shrunk, and at the same time, there has been a crop failure over there, so..."

"Oh, I understand." Yang Wendong nodded;
When a country is in crisis, the best course of action is to resort to foreign policy. The naval war between Argentina and Britain was essentially caused by the South American economic crisis, which led the Argentine government to take a risky gamble.
In this era, the threat posed by polar bears to Europe has always existed, and no one dares to ignore it, especially when polar bears are short of food.

Those assets in Eastern Europe were naturally in danger. But Yang Wendong didn't understand why Ukraine and Russia, both from his previous life, were grain exporters, while the current "Polar Bear" (Russia) still needed to import large quantities of grain.
It's important to understand that the fall of the polar bear was due to two main factors: firstly, the collapse of the distorted economy that maintained the domestic military-industrial complex caused by the drop in oil prices; and secondly, the massive food shortage, which gave the West a handle to exploit.

Klaus paused, then asked, "So what do you think? Are you willing to take the gamble?"

"Let me see the documents first," Yang Wendong said, not in a hurry to answer.

For others, investing in Eastern Europe would naturally be fraught with risk; but for him, a time traveler, it was almost risk-free.
But this is his unique advantage, and he won't show it.

"Okay, please wait a moment. I've prepared the documents and will send them over shortly." Klaus then made a phone call.
However, they were speaking German, which Yang Wendong's industry couldn't understand;

Europe has a major problem: the lack of a unified language. Even with the EU and the Euro, this disadvantage will not be eliminated. For many companies, doing business in Europe incurs particularly high additional costs.

However, this cannot be changed. In addition, Europe is a wealthy country. If we can make money, we can only overcome all difficulties.

A few minutes later, a blonde assistant came in with some documents and handed them to Yang Wendong.

Yang Wendong glanced at it; it was written in both English and Traditional Chinese. It seemed that Deutsche Bank had made preparations in advance, considering that the transaction involved 300 car dealerships, which was no small scale.

Back then, Yang Wendong spent over $300 million to buy more than 3 car dealerships from Chrysler. The locations in Eastern Europe are quite different, but they would still cost at least tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of dollars.

After looking at the information for a while, Yang Wendong said, "These are all located in some major cities in Eastern Europe. The locations are decent. What about the prices?"

When Klaus saw Yang Wendong inquire about the price, he immediately realized that there seemed to be a chance, so he said, "The other party quoted $8500 million."

“It’s too expensive.” Yang Wendong shook his head and said, “Under normal circumstances, this price might be reasonable, but as you just said, we are now facing a political threat. If it really breaks out, then everything will be for nothing.”

Klaus said, "That's true, but the probability of a conflict is still very low. NATO has already increased its troops in Eastern Europe, and considering the existence of nuclear weapons, even if there is a conflict, it will only be a small-scale conflict, and it is unlikely to lead to a major war."

The capital market is currently quite anxious; otherwise, these 300-plus car retail stores, which were previously valued at $100 million, could have been acquired easily.

"Whether or not a political crisis will erupt depends on individual mindset. Since they want to take action, they must be very worried, right?" Yang Wendong asked with a smile.
Just like in Hong Kong, those who are worried are willing to suffer huge losses to cash out their houses, stocks, or Hong Kong dollars, and then exchange them for US dollars to invest or immigrate abroad.
Those who are not worried continue with their lives, while some confident people take the opportunity to buy at the bottom.

Historically, the four major families were able to succeed not only through various means, but also because they chose to buy up assets at rock-bottom prices during such times, thus achieving exponential growth in their assets.

Opportunity, opportunity, is opportunity within crisis.

Klaus nodded and said, "That's right. So, Eric, what's your price in mind?"

“Based on the data in this financial report, I think fifty to sixty million US dollars would be more appropriate.” Yang Wendong naturally wouldn’t be polite and would negotiate when necessary: ​​“However, since this involves a major acquisition and the company is not a listed company, I will definitely need to conduct a comprehensive financial audit before proceeding with the next round of negotiations.”

When it comes to acquisitions of listed companies, it's often enough to know just a little bit, because the law clearly stipulates that listed companies must not falsify their financial statements.
Although some listed companies may play word games, as long as the big data is not falsified, there is generally no major problem. Cases like that of Jianing Group are rare.

Therefore, acquiring a listed company carries much lower risk, and if data falsification is subsequently discovered, the other party can be held accountable, and even criminal charges can be pursued.

However, for non-listed companies, unless they are very large or the contracts involve fraud, they can only rely on their own verification. The acquirer needs to bear certain risks, which is one of the reasons why many companies choose to go public.

“That’s right. Let’s do this: I’ll contact them, but let’s not discuss the price yet. Let’s sign a memorandum of understanding first, then conduct a financial audit. Once the results are in, we can proceed with further negotiations.” Klaus naturally understood the acquisition process.

“Okay, I will arrange for the German branch to cooperate.” Yang Wendong paused, then said, “Klaus, please do a thorough investigation in Eastern Europe for me. See which companies or large farms are involved in retail, home appliance technology, IT, etc. If there are any suitable ones, I may be able to invest in or acquire them.”

The current concerns about polar bears in Eastern Europe have led to a slump in capital markets, which is very similar to the current situation in Hong Kong.

However, he mainly invests in real estate and finance in Hong Kong, while he has little interest in real estate and finance in Eastern Europe, but he is willing to consider investing in some companies with technological capabilities.
This can be considered a bargain purchase in Eastern Europe.

"So, Eric, you don't think ZZ will erupt." Klaus understood Yang Wendong's intention as soon as he heard this.

Only those who believe there will be no outbreak of corruption would dare to enter the market at this time;

However, this is also the norm. Many wealthy people like to take a gamble like this. If they lose, they suffer huge losses; if they win, they make a fortune. They enjoy the thrill.

Some people, in particular, gamble with leverage, and if they lose, they really might jump off a building. But no matter the era, there will always be people like this.

Yang Wendong smiled and said, "That depends on one's view on the global landscape."

PS: Please give me a monthly ticket
(End of this chapter)