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"Oh, it's Uncle He. Of course I'm always available when you need me. How about this, let's meet at the Joy Lai Restaurant in Central at 6:30 tonight?" Although he didn't know why the other party wanted to see him, Lin Haoran agreed directly.

In any case, the other party used to be a very good partner of my father Lin Wanan.

Moreover, before he rose to prominence, he had borrowed money from the other party. Although the loan had long been repaid, the favor still existed.

But he didn't understand that Uncle He was the chairman of Hengsheng Bank, and Hengsheng Bank was a subsidiary of Huifeng Bank.

When he officially declared war on Huifeng Bank, the other party came to him.

Could it be that the other party was commissioned by Shen Bi to act as a lobbyist and persuade him to give up the confrontation with Huifeng Bank, or did he have some other ulterior motive?
Although Lin Haoran was full of doubts, he did not ask over the phone.

"Okay, in that case, let's meet at the Xiyuelai Restaurant at 6:30! By the way, Haoran, it would be better to get a private room with better privacy. I don't want to be seen by others for the time being." He Shanheng said on the phone.

"Uncle He, you can rest assured about this. I will arrange it!" Lin Haoran said with a smile.

Joy Lai Restaurant is a subsidiary of the Jardine Matheson Group, and he is the boss of the Jardine Matheson Group, so arranging a private box with excellent privacy is just a piece of cake.

After hanging up the phone, Lin Haoran personally called the restaurant manager and gave instructions to ensure that the environment and service of the private room met the highest standards and were kept strictly confidential.

Joy Lai Restaurant now has five branches in Hong Kong. Although not many, it is definitely the most high-end Chinese-Western fusion restaurant in Hong Kong.

For example, the Joy Lai Restaurant in Tsim Sha Tsui, which was Lin Wanan’s favorite restaurant in the past, is one of them.

The Joy Lai Restaurant in Central actually just opened last year. It is located in Landmark Plaza and has become the most popular restaurant in Central since its opening.

Now, under the leadership of Ma Shimin, Xiyuelai Restaurant is preparing for large-scale expansion and is committed to building the Xiyuelai Restaurant brand into a multinational catering group.

I looked at the time. It was not yet five o'clock in the afternoon, so it was still early.

It only takes about ten minutes to walk from the Bank of East Asia’s headquarters building to Landmark Plaza.

So, he was in no hurry to leave.

After returning to the chairman's office of Bank of East Asia, Lin Haoran called Dai Shi to find out about the current situation of Bank of East Asia's stock.

"Boss, according to your instructions, we quickly bought stocks after the market opened in the afternoon. We bought about 3100 million shares in one go. The prices of these stocks ranged from 4 to 6 Hong Kong dollars, and the final average purchase cost was 5.2 Hong Kong dollars per share.

After we stopped buying, those investors mistakenly believed that Bank of East Asia's share price still had room to rise, so it was instantly pulled up and at one point rose back to around HK$10.

However, this rise did not last long. After you announced the privatization of Bank of East Asia and the bid was no higher than HK$6, the stock price quickly fell back to HK$6 per share like a slide, and the trading volume almost stagnated.

When the market closed at 4:6, I carefully counted and found that more than million shares of HK$ per share appeared in the market. I couldn't miss this opportunity, so I quickly arranged for someone to buy all these stocks before the market closed.

As a result, we currently control 124.8 million shares of BankAsia, accounting for more than 80% of the shares.

In addition, I have taken the initiative to contact Li Peicai's family. As far as I know, they have not sold any stocks today and still hold more than 9 million shares. After negotiations, they agreed to sell them to us, and what surprised me was that Mr. Li Fushu did not bargain.

Now, if we can take over their shares, our shareholding ratio will soar to 90%.

Also, I sent someone to the Securities Regulatory Commission before the market closed, and we have already obtained the privatization license. Boss, given this situation, the privatization of Bank of East Asia will be successful soon!"

Dai Shi's face was full of excitement, and he reported all the good news to Lin Haoran.

Lin Haoran nodded. He was not surprised that the subsequent share purchase went so smoothly.

After all, he had previously made it clear in a live TV broadcast that if the forced privatization process was initiated, the upper limit of the bid would be only HK$6, and before the privatization was successfully implemented, no funds would be injected into Bank of East Asia, and the businesses of companies such as Hong Kong Land Group would not be transferred to Bank of East Asia for the time being.

In addition, Governor MacLehose publicly supported his privatization initiative for the Bank of East Asia, and also stressed that all relevant procedures could be simplified in an effort to achieve privatization as soon as possible.

Under this established situation, the share price of Bank of East Asia has lost its room for growth.

Whether its stock price will rise in the future depends entirely on whether Lin Haoran will inject capital into it, as well as the market's expectations on whether high-quality businesses such as Hong Kong Electric Group and Hongkong Land Group will be transferred to Bank of East Asia.

Now that the direction of privatization is clear and the price cap has been set, those retail investors and some shareholders who attempted to profit from stock price fluctuations naturally no longer have the confidence to hold on and have chosen to sell.

If it is sold at HK$6, the loss will definitely be a big loss, as many people bought it at a high price.

However, in this situation, there is nothing we can do about it.

If it is not sold, it will be forcibly privatized and the price will remain the same.

It’s better to sell it early and cash in.

After hanging up the phone, Lin Haoran seemed to be in a good mood.

There is no longer any suspense or obstacle regarding the privatization of Bank of East Asia, and everything is progressing at the pace he expected.

Next, we can focus on dealing with the commercial competition with Huifeng Bank.

He has already made his move, and now he just needs to wait and see how Huifeng Bank will respond next.

Lin Haoran had no worries about whether Huifeng Bank would secretly hinder or use shady tactics in the privatization process of Bank of East Asia.

You should know that Governor MacLehose personally supported the privatization process on live television, which greatly simplified the process and made all procedures legal and compliant.

If Huifeng Bank wanted to interfere, it would undoubtedly be a blatant challenge to the authority of Governor MacLehose and would not give face to MacLehose. They would not easily do such a stupid thing.

What's more, he currently holds more than 80% of Bank of East Asia's shares.

After successfully acquiring the more than 9 million shares held by Li Peicai's family, the shareholding ratio will soar to 90%.

Such a high shareholding ratio is like an iron wall. Even if Huifeng Bank racks its brains and uses all means, it will be difficult to create any waves in this privatization process. Everything is under his control.

With Galaxy Securities responsible for the privatization of Bank of East Asia, Lin Haoran no longer has any worries.

At the same time, many employees in the 20 branches of Bank of East Asia and even in the head office are feeling panic.

In the face of irrefutable evidence, these employees had clearly signed job-hopping contracts with Huifeng Bank, but stayed in Bank of East Asia and secretly made trouble, causing uninformed customers to believe that Bank of East Asia was delaying time, which led to today's huge mass demonstration. This has violated potential legal and professional ethical red lines related to commercial fraud, disturbing public order and workplace loyalty.

If Huifeng Bank does not support them, they will become abandoned pawns and will not only have to bear fines but may even face imprisonment.

Bank of East Asia will naturally not show mercy to these employees who are secretly causing trouble.

They have already secretly investigated and compiled a very complete list, which has even been directly released now. Basically, every major media outlet has a copy!
Now that it has been announced, there is naturally no need to tolerate it anymore.

After the press conference, Oyama, the interim president of the Bank of East Asia, began to instruct the presidents of each branch to liquidate these confirmed traitors.

The employee was fired on the spot and the evidence was handed over to the police and financial regulatory authorities.

These are things that are known to all in Hong Kong, and the customers of Bank of East Asia who are protesting hate them to the core.

If these employees who were poached from Huifeng Bank had not been secretly making trouble, how could they have wasted their time and energy for nothing and got involved in this unprovoked mass demonstration.

Now that the truth has come to light, the people’s anger has found an outlet. Even if Huifeng Bank is behind these people, so what?

The list has been thoroughly published, and it can be said that the whole of Hong Kong is under supervision. If the police let these employees go in favor of Hui Feng Bank, the credibility of the police will suffer an unprecedented blow, and the public's trust in the fairness of the law will be gone.

By then, the wave of public opinion will surely surge, pushing the police and even the entire Hong Kong judicial system to the forefront.

Therefore, the police were forced to send people to arrest these people.

And those employees who were fired were in extreme panic at this moment.

They originally thought that with Huifeng Bank's support behind them, they would be safe even if the truth was revealed. However, they did not expect that Huifeng Bank chose to remain silent at this critical moment and ignored them.

It is obvious that Huifeng Bank has already treated them as abandoned pawns.

Huifeng Bank had no shortage of staff. They poached them only because they were valuable and wanted to plunge Bank of East Asia into chaos or even collapse faster, so as to gain the upper hand in the competition.

Now that they have lost their usefulness and have gotten themselves into trouble, Huifeng Bank will naturally not spend any time on them.

Therefore, the outcome of this group of people is destined to be tragic.

Even if they don't have to go to jail, they will not be able to survive in the workplace in Hong Kong because of this incident.

After all, being a traitor has always been a taboo in the workplace, especially in the financial industry, where integrity and loyalty are regarded as the foundation of one's career.

Now their deeds have spread throughout Hong Kong and are notorious. Which bank would dare to hire them easily?

Once they are labeled as "business traitors", their careers are completely ruined.

Those Bank of East Asia employees who had originally thought about changing jobs also secretly breathed a sigh of relief at this moment. Fortunately, they did not act impulsively and kept their bottom line at the critical moment. They did not secretly collude with Huifeng Bank to do anything that would harm the interests of Bank of East Asia.

Otherwise, they might be the ones who fall into panic and despair.

Within the Bank of East Asia, a purge of internal "traitors" is proceeding in an orderly manner.

Following the instructions of interim president Dashan, the branch presidents acted quickly and cleared out the employees on the list one by one.

In the office, the fired employees looked pale. They hurriedly packed up their belongings and left the Bank of East Asia in disgrace amid strange looks from their colleagues.

Especially at the headquarters of Bank of East Asia, several middle and senior managers were handcuffed and taken away by the police.

Naturally, Lin Haoran doesn't need to worry about these things.

At around 6:10, he left the headquarters building of Bank of East Asia and went to Landmark Plaza in advance.

Under the guidance of the general manager of Xiyuelai Restaurant, he soon came to a very luxurious box.

Not long after, He Shanheng, led by the restaurant's general manager, also arrived at the box on time. He Shanheng was wearing a well-tailored dark suit and his hair was combed meticulously. Although he was over 80 years old, he was energetic and walked steadily.

Lin Haoran was relatively familiar with this old man.

The famous Hang Seng Index was compiled under the leadership of Ho Sin Hang.

As far as I can remember, he died in the year Hong Kong returned to China.

In other words, this old man still has 16 years left to live. He was 97 years old and could be considered a long-lived person.

Lin Haoran looked at Ho Shan Heng, the legendary figure in Hong Kong's financial world. Even at this age, he still exudes an aura that cannot be underestimated.

If we were to ask who is the financial leader of the Chinese community in Hong Kong, it would definitely be Ho Sin Hang!
"Uncle He, please take a seat." Lin Haoran bowed slightly and gestured with his hand.

He Shanheng smiled, nodded, and sat down.

"Haoran, when I met you more than two years ago, I never thought that you could create such brilliant achievements in such a short time." He Shanheng looked at Lin Haoran, his eyes full of emotion, "Although you were just beginning to show your talent at that time, the financial world is ever-changing. Who could have expected that you would be in the situation you are in today? Lin Wanan has raised a good son!"

"Uncle He, you are too kind. My father often mentioned to me your legendary deeds in the financial industry and asked me to follow your example. What would you like to eat?" Lin Haoran responded with a smile while handing the menu to He Shanheng.

The general manager of the restaurant came over to serve them personally, holding a pen and paper, waiting for them to take their order.

Although Lin Haoran still has no idea what this financial tycoon wants to discuss with him, he has no intention of asking proactively.

The two of them ordered a few dishes at random.

Before all the dishes were served, it was obvious that no one had any intention of getting down to business.

So, the two of them drank tea and chatted about the business world in Hong Kong.

Bank of East Asia is also a competitor of Hengsheng Bank, so Ho Sin Heng's understanding of Bank of East Asia is even second only to Li Fushu himself.

Several chefs personally cook for them, even during the time when most people are eating.

This is the advantage of having your own restaurant.

Therefore, the dishes they ordered were all served in just over ten minutes, and the general manager even served them personally.

Since He Shanheng didn't want to be seen here, he naturally made the meeting as secretive and thorough as possible.

"Uncle He, please try this dish. It's our Joyful Lai's signature dish. The chef's cooking skills have been praised by many business leaders." Lin Haoran gestured with a smile, trying to create a relaxed atmosphere.

"Haoran, I think you must be curious about why I came to see you this time, right?" He Shanheng was not in a hurry to eat.

Lin Haoran nodded.

Indeed, he still couldn't figure out why the other party was looking for him.

Although the other party is a senior figure in Hong Kong's Chinese capital community, Hengsheng Bank now belongs to the British-owned company Huifeng Bank.

Lin Haoran is now engaged in a fierce business competition with Huifeng Bank. The two sides are on the verge of a war and the situation is tense.

In this context, it is really puzzling that He Shanheng took the initiative to meet with me.

He Shanheng put down the chopsticks in his hand, looked at Lin Haoran calmly and deeply, and said slowly: "Haoran, although I am now the chairman of Hengsheng Bank, the foundation of Hengsheng Bank in the past is Chinese capital.

Throughout my life, I have witnessed the ups and downs of Hong Kong's financial sector, and I am well aware of the difficulties faced by Chinese-funded enterprises in this field. This time, I am not here to lobby you on behalf of Shen Bi to give up your confrontation with Huifeng Bank, nor am I here to mediate between the two of you."

Lin Haoran raised his eyebrows slightly. Although he was confused, he still waited quietly for He Shanheng to continue.

"As a British-owned company, the Bank of Hong Kong has always held a dominant position in the financial sector of Hong Kong. They act in a strong manner and often do not take Chinese-owned companies seriously.

The targeting of Bank of East Asia by Huifeng Bank reminded me of the time when Hengsheng Bank was acquired by Huifeng Bank. At that time, under my leadership, Hengsheng Bank developed rapidly and had a bright future.

However, an inexplicable public opinion directly caused Hengsheng Bank to fall into a bank run, and Hengsheng Bank was forced to become a subsidiary of Huifeng Bank.

Since then, Hengsheng Bank's development has been restricted in every way, and many decisions have been constrained by Huifeng Bank. Although Hengsheng Bank is still prosperous today, as a subsidiary of Huifeng Bank, it will never be able to surpass Huifeng Bank. "

When He Shanheng said this, a trace of melancholy and unwillingness flashed in his eyes, as if the pain of the past was still deeply engraved in his heart.

Lin Haoran listened quietly, and felt more understanding and sympathy for He Shanheng's situation.

At the same time, he was also a little surprised. The acquisition of Hengsheng Bank happened 16 years ago, but he didn't expect that the other party still hadn't let it go. It seemed that the past was indeed an indelible mark on him.

In Hong Kong's financial world, it is already difficult for Chinese companies to compete with British companies. The experience of Hengsheng Bank is just a microcosm of the difficult situation faced by many Chinese companies.

I didn't expect He Shanheng to have such an idea. It seems that although Huifeng Bank acquired Hengsheng Bank, and He Shanheng has now strictly speaking become a professional manager under Huifeng Group, he has no feelings for Huifeng Bank at all!
This was completely different from what he had imagined. He thought the other party was most likely here to negotiate with him on behalf of Shen Bi.

Now it seems that is not the case at all.

He looked at He Shanheng seriously and said, "Uncle He, what you mean is..."

"Haoran, you didn't know much about the Hong Kong financial world before, so you didn't know about the hegemony and unfair practices of Huifeng Bank in the Hong Kong financial world.

Relying on their strong capital and deep background, they wantonly suppressed Chinese-funded enterprises and monopolized market resources. Many potential and innovative Chinese-funded financial institutions have struggled to survive under their malicious competition, and some have even been forced to exit the market.

Do you think that with your strong financial support, Bank of East Asia will be able to easily overcome the difficulties? "He Shanheng paused here.

Lin Haoran nodded. At this point, he really didn't have too many worries about the future of Bank of East Asia, even though its opponent was the all-powerful financial tycoon of Hong Kong, Huifeng Bank.

He Shanheng continued, "To tell you the truth, Haoran, Huifeng Bank's methods are far more than what you have seen so far. You must not take it lightly and think that you have won the game.

I watched the entire live broadcast in the afternoon. Although your evidence is solid, there is no substantial damage to Huifeng Bank. They have a strong foundation, and this disturbance is just a ripple on the lake and will soon subside.

They have enough connections, resources and means to resolve crises, and even turn danger into safety and reverse unfavorable situations.

When faced with a choice between the two, even if customers feel bad for Bank of East Asia, they will most likely choose Bank of East Asia in the end. After all, Bank of East Asia has been operating in Hong Kong for many years, its brand influence is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, and customers have extremely high trust in it.

This kind of trust cannot be established overnight, nor can it be easily shaken by some public opinion in a short period of time."

Lin Haoran listened and disagreed.

Indeed, he understood everything that He Shanheng said.

In a short period of time, all the customers of Bank of East Asia may run away, but so what?
Don't forget that the assets he now controls are enough to make him not afraid of any British financial group.

One real estate group alone is worth tens of thousands of customers.

However, he still asked curiously: "Does Uncle He have any good suggestions?"

"I have been working in Hong Kong's financial industry for many years and I am very familiar with the situation here. Haoran, in my opinion, if you want to keep Bank of East Asia's financial business in Hong Kong and don't want to watch the market share that Bank of East Asia has accumulated with decades of hard work go down the drain, there is only one way left - to cooperate with Citibank.

Citibank did not even attend the Hong Kong Banking Association's meeting this time, which clearly shows that it does not take Hui Feng Bank seriously.

Today, Huifeng Bank is wholeheartedly pursuing international development, while Citibank is a well-known presence in the international financial field, with the highest level of internationalization and the highest market share in the world.

If Huifeng Bank wants to make a difference in the international market, it will definitely not be able to avoid Citibank. If Bank of East Asia can reach a cooperation with Citibank, Huifeng Bank will definitely feel tremendous pressure.

Perhaps, under pressure, it will abandon its unfair "choose one of two" competition method, or even make concessions to Bank of East Asia in certain businesses.

After all, Citibank has deep connections and strong influence in the international market, and is fully capable of hindering Huifeng Bank's international layout at critical moments.

Only by doing so can Huifeng Bank bow its head, and Bank of East Asia can also take this opportunity to gain a firm foothold in this fierce confrontation with Huifeng Bank. "He Shanheng slowly expressed his thoughts.

In fact, He Shanheng didn't know that the reason why Citibank did not participate in the Hong Kong Banking Association was not to give face to Huifeng Bank, but to give face to Lin Haoran!

However, at this moment, Lin Haoran didn't care at all about the suggestions made by He Shanheng.

Naturally, cooperating with Citibank had already been his plan for a long time, and there was no need for He Shanheng to bring it up.

However, these are not what he is thinking about now.

At this moment, he suddenly had an idea.

Since Ho Sin Hang has no sense of belonging to Hui Feng Bank and he is gradually losing his shares in Heng Sheng Bank, why not poach Ho Sin Hang to Bank of East Asia?
Although He Shanheng is still the chairman of Hengsheng Bank today, in fact, Hengsheng Bank is no longer named He.

Once he passed away, the He family would not be able to inherit the management rights of Hengsheng Bank.

Ho Sin Hang's ability is obvious to all. He is definitely the number one Chinese banker in Hong Kong.

The fact that he led the compilation of the "Hang Seng Index" is enough to make him leave a significant mark in Hong Kong's financial history!
His professional qualities, industry insights and deep network of contacts in the financial world are all valuable assets that Bank of East Asia urgently needs at this moment.

If he can be recruited to Bank of East Asia, it will undoubtedly be a shot in the arm for the bank, and he can rest assured about its future development.

After losing the Li Peicai family, Bank of East Asia now lacks a core leader who can take charge of the overall situation and make strategic plans. Ho Sin Hang is undoubtedly the best candidate to fill this vacancy.

With him by our side, Bank of East Asia will be able to respond more calmly and formulate more forward-looking and targeted strategies when facing the challenges of Huifeng Bank.

Since Huifeng is poaching my people, then it’s not too much for me to poach Huifeng’s people too, right?

As for whether he could convince He Shanheng, although he was not 100% sure, he was not without a chance.

Especially under the current situation of Bank of East Asia, the other party actually took the initiative to find him and asked him how to deal with the competition from Huifeng Bank.

From this point, it is clear that He Shanheng has no feelings for Huifeng Bank. (End of this chapter)