In Hong Kong, we build a global business empire

Chapter 418 It’s so bad!

Today is Sunday, the stock market is closed, and Huanyu Investment Company is closed as usual.

There were no plans for the morning, so Lin Haoran decided to spend a quiet morning on the hotel balcony, holding an economics book in his hands and immersing himself in his own world.

The sunlight shines through the gaps in the curtains and onto the balcony, adding a bit of warmth to this winter morning.

Lin Haoran was leisurely flipping through a book, occasionally looking up at the bustling street scene of New York skyscrapers in the distance, and looking down at the busy streets below, enjoying this rare tranquility and leisure.

At this moment, the phone in the room suddenly rang, breaking the silence.

When he heard the phone ringing, Lin Haoran's first reaction was that the call should be from Bill Gates, because this phone number was not known to most people. After all, it was the hotel's private phone.

For other people, he basically called the office of Huanyu Investment Company. If those people wanted to find him, they would also call the office.

Last night, in the private room of the coffee shop, in addition to his personal business card, he also specifically told Bill Gates this phone number so that Bill could contact him at any time.

Lin Haoran is still very positive about investing in Microsoft.

He put down the book in his hand, stood up and walked to the phone. He picked up the receiver and heard the familiar voice of Bill Gates: "Mr. Lin, sorry to bother you. I'm Bill. I have some good news to share with you."

Lin Haoran's mind moved, and he guessed that it might be about the follow-up progress of Microsoft's financing.

He smiled and said, "Oh? Bill, what good news makes you so excited? Is there any new progress in financing?"

Bill Gates laughed at the other end of the phone and said, "Mr. Lin, you are really as good as a god. Last night, I successfully convinced Paul Allen, and he welcomes your investment very much.

Paul Allen will also fly from Seattle to New York in the morning and will arrive here around noon. We can sign the shareholding contract with you at any time at that time. I wonder if Mr. Lin is free at 2 o'clock in the afternoon?"

Hearing this, Lin Haoran couldn't help but smile with satisfaction.

He expected that Bill Gates would be able to convince Paul Allen, but hearing the news in person still made him feel genuinely happy.

"Of course, two o'clock in the afternoon, right? Then you can come to the office of Huanyu Investment Company at that time. We can formally sign the contract there and complete all the formalities."

After Lin Haoran finished speaking, he clearly told Bill Gates the detailed office address of Universal Investment Company to ensure that the other party could find the location smoothly.

Bill Gates also seemed quite excited on the other end of the phone. He confirmed, "Okay, Mr. Lin, I will arrive on time at 2 pm. Thank you very much for your trust and support. We at Microsoft will definitely go all out for your investment and will not let you down."

30 US dollars, for Microsoft, this is definitely a huge sum of money. They can use this money to do many things, such as marketing, and the most important thing is, of course, to develop Microsoft as soon as possible.

Microsoft was founded in the same year as Apple, but now it lags far behind Apple.

Most importantly, Microsoft has yet to really establish itself as a company.

Lin Haoran smiled and responded: "I also believe in your ability and potential, otherwise I would not have made the decision to invest in you. See you this afternoon, Bill. I look forward to our cooperation to create a better future."

After hanging up the phone, Lin Haoran felt unusually cheerful.

After all, this is Microsoft, the most famous computer software company in the past.

In the world before he traveled through time, as the world's largest software company, Microsoft has always topped the global software company rankings with its strong technical strength and extensive product lines.

Microsoft's products include Windows operating system, Office productivity software, Azure cloud service, etc., covering almost every aspect of people's lives.

Such a global giant company was still in obscurity in 1980 and few people knew about it.

It was because of this that he was able to raise funds for Microsoft so smoothly and at such a low cost.

It’s hard to believe how much profit this $30 investment would bring him decades later.

I have the impression that if Microsoft's stock price remained the same as in its previous life, its market value in 1999 would have exceeded $6000 billion.

By 2024, Microsoft's market value will exceed trillion US dollars, not much different from Apple.

Although his 30% stake will gradually shrink in the future as Microsoft raises funds multiple times and even issues additional shares after its IPO, even if only 10% remains in the future, his value will still be ridiculously high.

Assuming that only 10% of the shares are left, the market value will be 19 billion US dollars after 6000 years. The shares held by Lin Haoran will be worth 600 billion US dollars, and the original investment was 30 US dollars, which is equivalent to a 20-fold increase!
In less than 20 years, the return on investment has reached more than 20 times. What a terrifying return on investment!

What's more, when Microsoft conducts multiple financing or goes public in the future, he can also increase his holdings, even if he only maintains a 30% stake.

But these are things for the future, so he doesn't need to think too much about them for now.

As far as I can remember, Microsoft would not go public until 1986, which is still several years away!
Therefore, as long as he signs the financing contract with Microsoft, he will not have to worry about the problems on Microsoft's side for the time being.

It’s only $30, it’s a steal!
He walked back to the balcony. The sunlight was shining brightly at the moment, warm but not dazzling. He took a deep breath of the fresh air, as if even the air was filled with the scent of good luck.

Investing in Microsoft was indeed a surprise. If it weren't for the kind invitation of Walter Wriston, chairman of Citibank, who gave him the honor to attend this year-end banquet, he might not have had the opportunity to meet so many American business leaders.

At this year-end banquet, he not only met Wang An, a legend in the Chinese computer industry, but also unexpectedly met Bill Gates.

Even if this encounter had not taken place, he would definitely find time to invest in Microsoft in the future.

But it is undeniable that this encounter greatly advanced the time when he became associated with Microsoft.

Perhaps, if there had not been this banquet, he might have invested in Microsoft only after Microsoft went public. But if he invested at that time, although he could still share in Microsoft's future glory, the best opportunity would have been lost, and the returns would naturally be greatly reduced.

When Microsoft went public in 1986, its market value on the first day was $6.7 million. Although this was several times less than Apple's market value on its first day of listing, it was much stronger than Microsoft, which is still a small company today.

This time, he met Bill Gates by chance, which led to the investment, greatly reducing the cost of his investment in Microsoft.

It can be said that this was a very successful investment, much more successful than the original investment in Apple.

When I invested in Apple, I invested a full 10 million US dollars.

But now, it's just $30.

In a blink of an eye, it was noon. After lunch, Lin Haoran called Su Zhixue and asked him to arrange a lawyer from a famous law firm in New York to assist him in signing the contract with Microsoft in the afternoon.

At around one o'clock in the afternoon, Lin Haoran had already appeared in the office of Huanyu Investment Company.

Su Zhixue also came with a white lawyer, and then Lin Haoran told them about the investment in Microsoft and the conditions, and asked them to draft a preliminary contract.

Although Su Zhixue didn't understand why his boss would invest in a company with such mediocre strength, he didn't ask any more questions.

After all, he knew that he just had to do his own thing and he didn't have to worry about anything else.

Bill Gates and a young man arrived here soon after.

Needless to say, this young man must be Paul Allen, the partner of Bill Gates.

Bill Gates is only 25 years old now, and although Paul Allen is a little older than Bill Gates, he is only 27 years old.

As soon as the two entered the room, Lin Haoran stood up enthusiastically, greeted them, smiled and extended his hand, saying: "Bill, welcome, this must be Mr. Paul Allen, you are really young and promising. I am very optimistic about you and Microsoft, and I am very happy to cooperate with you two."

Bill Gates and Paul Allen also quickly extended their hands and shook hands with Lin Haoran respectfully.

Now they are not at the same level as Lin Haoran, so when facing Lin Haoran, they seem to be inferior.

Even though Bill Gates is full of confidence in Microsoft's future, Microsoft today is still just an inconspicuous small company.

Bill Gates said: "Mr. Lin, we are also very honored to cooperate with you."

Paul Allen also nodded and agreed, "Yes, Mr. Lin, it is our luck to have your investment. So when I heard Bill say that Mr. Lin wanted to invest in Microsoft, I agreed without hesitation. I have brought some information about Microsoft and can assist in the signing of the contract."

Lin Haoran laughed and said, "Okay, let's not be polite. Let's sit down first. I have asked someone to prepare the contract. Let's take a look at the contract first and sign it if there is no problem."

As he spoke, Lin Haoran led the two of them to the meeting area in the office. After they sat down, Su Zhixue took out the prepared contract.

Lin Haoran handed the contract to Bill Gates and Paul Allen respectively, and the three began to review it carefully.

The content of the contract is not complicated. It mainly clarifies the amount of Lin Haoran's investment in Microsoft, the proportion of shares held, and the rights and obligations of both parties.

The three of them read and discussed at the same time. When they encountered controversial points, they stopped to negotiate and resolve them, and then revise them again.

After some discussion and revision, the three finally reached a consensus on the contents of the contract.

Then, Su Zhixue printed out the redrafted contract in triplicate.

Lin Haoran picked up the pen and signed his name on the contract meticulously.

Seeing this, Bill Gates and Paul Allen quickly followed suit and solemnly signed their names on the contract.

Then, the lawyer signed his name on the contract as a witness and stamped the law firm’s official seal, giving the contract formal legal effect.

Looking at this effective contract, Lin Haoran showed a satisfied smile on his face.

This contract means that from today on, he officially became the third largest shareholder of Microsoft, second only to Bill Gates and Paul Allen.

(End of this chapter)