The unparalleled talent of the country started from Harbin Institute of Technology

Chapter 294 A Stable Personality Leads to Exaggerated Revenue

Inside the chairman's office at the Want Want Group headquarters, most of the group's senior executives are present, along with a few others, such as the Wang Meili and Wang Meihe sisters, who are currently at home recovering from childbirth.

Upon hearing Wang Jianchao's question, Hela O'Brien glanced at Wang Duoyu, who nodded slightly, before answering:
"This time, our Maple Capital Investment Division II earned a total of US$1.68 billion."

hiss!
Zheng Baoyin, Wei Ruolai, Wen Shixuan and the others all gasped, their pupils wide with shock. Although they didn't quite understand, they were genuinely astonished.

$1.68 billion! And that's just the profit earned by Maple Capital's second investment division.

Before September, the second investment division only had 50 million US dollars.

By leveraging margin trading, they made a staggering $1.68 billion.

Wang Duoyu nodded and said:
"Now that we've already made a profit, we'll use it all to buy shares in companies like Coca-Cola in batches, and then use those shares as collateral for loans to secure half of the funds."

Upon hearing Wang Duoyu's words, O'Brien quickly wrote them down with paper and pen.

This is Maple Tree Capital's next investment direction; it's all about money.

It's clear that stocks of companies like Coca-Cola are meant to be held long-term; those that aren't meant to be held long-term wouldn't do that.

As for the later stages, that means shorting.

There were many companies suitable for short selling in the 1980s, such as American real estate companies.

Speaking of this, we must mention the American Savings and Loan Association, a unique non-bank financial institution in the United States. Its main business is to accept savings deposits and provide homebuyers with long-term fixed-rate mortgage loans.

Following World War II, the United States experienced rapid economic growth and a booming real estate market. Savings and loan associations played a crucial role in this boom, with prominent New York real estate tycoons like the Donald family rising to prominence during this period.

However, the global economic environment underwent tremendous changes after the 1970s.

The oil crisis triggered high inflation and a sharp rise in interest rates.

However, since the loan interest rates of savings and loan associations are fixed, while savings interest rates rise due to market influences, a severe interest rate inversion has occurred, resulting in a significant reduction in institutional profits.

For example, in the early 1980s, the Federal Reserve announced interest rates that even reached 10 percent, which was quite alarming.

Therefore, after Reagan took office, the government passed two bills in 1980 and 1982 that relaxed regulations on savings and loan associations.

These reforms allow savings and loan associations to engage in a wider range of businesses, including commercial real estate investment and riskier lending.

However, the relaxation of regulations was accompanied by the strengthening of risk control measures. In pursuit of high returns, many savings and loan associations blindly expanded and invested in high-risk projects.

Some criminals even exploit regulatory loopholes to commit fraud and illegal operations.

At the same time, the US economic environment did not improve. In the second half of 1985, the real estate market began to decline, and the drop in oil prices affected the energy industry, leading to widespread defaults on related loans.

Given this historical context, it's easy to imagine the impact this would have on the US real estate market.

Most importantly, the asset quality of more than 4,000 savings and loan associations across the United States has deteriorated rapidly, resulting in huge and expanding losses.

Even though the government was aware of the seriousness of the problem, it failed to take timely and effective measures due to political and economic reasons.

This will cause the situation to worsen further.

In other words, the US housing market will continue to decline.

In the original timeline, it was for this reason that the savings and loan crisis erupted in full force until the late 1980s, resulting in the collapse of more than a thousand institutions.

At this point, the US government stepped in to resolve the issue, ultimately spending $160 billion to fix it.

In 1989, Sony spent $3.4 billion to acquire Columbia Pictures, while Mitsubishi spent $1.4 billion to acquire Rockefeller Center, a historic landmark in the United States.

While the appreciation of the yen played a role, the main reason was that the US real estate market itself had a bubble that was about to burst.

Besides the crisis of savings and loan associations and high inflation, the US housing market expanded rapidly.

In 1986, the U.S. real estate market experienced a bubble burst, as the country enacted a new tax amendment that eliminated many tax avoidance methods, particularly those related to real estate investment.

On the other hand, there has been recent volatility in oil prices.

"Next, besides continuing to invest in the foreign exchange market, Maple Tree Capital will short the US real estate market."

"At the same time, some of the funds were used entirely to purchase oil."

Hela O'Brien nodded repeatedly upon hearing Wang Duoyu's words.

Zheng Baoyin and the others listened thoughtfully, their minds racing, but they couldn't grasp the underlying logic.

International oil prices began to fall in November 1985, and have now plummeted to $18 per barrel.

In less than two months, international oil prices fell from $31.82 per barrel to $18, a very large drop.

They didn't understand why, but Wang Duoyu knew very well.

The reason for this epic 43% drop in oil prices is quite simple.

In the 1970s, oil prices soared due to the relationship between the US dollar and oil, as well as the acceleration of economic globalization and other factors.

This has spurred a surge in oilfield exploitation in the North Sea and Alaska, while OPEC member countries have also taken the opportunity to increase production capacity.

With oil prices high, I definitely need to earn some extra money.

However, by November 1985, the Saudi Empire had grown tired of the deceptive practices of other OPEC members and stopped limiting its own production.

When Saudi Arabia, a super-oil-producing nation, also frantically dumped crude oil into the market, international oil prices plummeted like a waterfall.

From $31.82 a barrel to the current $18 a barrel, an epic drop of over 43 percent has sent shockwaves through the market.

As is well known, when oil prices fall, the US dollar actually appreciates.

Unfortunately, the Plaza Accord was signed in September, and in November, oil prices plummeted, naturally causing the dollar, which had just begun to depreciate, to start appreciating again.

If Japan hadn't steadfastly continued to sell off US assets, causing the dollar to depreciate, the dollar would likely have appreciated by now.

Knowing these facts, Wang Duoyu made Hela O'Brien do it this way.

The global economy is like a big game, and while each piece may seem insignificant, the butterfly effect does exist in the economy.

If it weren't for the long-standing deceptive practices of OPEC member countries, and the continued development of oil fields in the North Sea and Alaska, the Saudi Empire wouldn't have suddenly become 'furious' and started dumping.

After Wang Duoyu finished speaking, Wen Shixuan suddenly asked:

"Professor, so this time, our Red Star Steel Plant should be able to expand its investment, right?"

As the head of Hongxing Steel Plant, Wen Shixuan always wanted to make a lot of money, but Wang Duoyu didn't really support him. So his support for the steel plant was mainly in research and development funding, while he showed little interest in expanding production capacity or other aspects.

Logically speaking, with so much money earned this time, Want Want Group should be able to increase its investment, right?
However, Wang Duoyu shook his head and said:

"No, the Kunming branch is already the biggest concession I've made. The main task of your Hongxing Steel Plant is scientific research, not anything else. Don't think too much about it. You just need to complete the R&D tasks I assign you every year."

After a pause, Wang Duoyu continued:

"The heads of several major laboratories are also absent today. Baoyin, remember to bring them to the next meeting and have them attend the senior management meeting together."

"Here's what we'll do: you'll have to come back to China at least twice a year for two senior management meetings. Whenever you come back, the lab director also needs to be back."

"China Northern Airlines now has eight aircraft, including two Boeing 747s, which are fully capable of operating overseas routes."

"Alright, let's give it another try. Next year, our Want Want Group will strive to purchase large aircraft, which will then be entirely for the use of you senior executives and the group."

Upon hearing Wang Duoyu's words, Zheng Baoyin and the others exclaimed in surprise.

Is this true?
Wow, if they really purchase such a large aircraft, it would be incredibly convenient for these executives.

With airplanes, you can fly all over the world.

Currently, Want Want Group's profits are not very high, but it has already established Maple Leaf Holdings, which includes related financial investment companies such as Maple Capital, thus adding another cash cow company.

After discussing these matters, Wang Duoyu then asked them to report on the situation of the companies they were responsible for.

However, it's not appropriate to stay in the office at this time; it would be more suitable to go to the conference room for a meeting.

Ten minutes later, a few more people joined the meeting room.

Today, Want Want Group also has more and more companies, such as Babus, Yuma, Red Star, Pandora, and Xibel, and since 1985, it has also been involved in internet companies.

The first company executive to report this year was Tong Zhigang from Facebook.

Although it was his first time attending such a meeting, he wasn't nervous at all.

As an internet company that is relatively new, Facebook is currently reporting on its investment activities, as well as pageviews and dwell time.

For an internet company, this is the most important thing.

In developed countries such as the United States, Japan, and Europe, the number of internet users is still relatively small. However, as an emerging internet company, Facebook can now get more than 50,000 pageviews every day, which shows that the company is doing very well.

Once the fiber optic cable from Beijing to Kowloon is completed, Wang Duoyu will be able to access Facebook's website from Harbin Institute of Technology.

Of course, the earliest dial-up internet users in China certainly couldn't access the foreign internet, but Wang Duoyu certainly wouldn't be restricted.

Even if he is restricted, he can easily break through the so-called restrictions and go to the foreign internet to take a look.

After Tong Zhigang finished his report, they went to see Qiao Hanliang, the person in charge of the Motong Toys Factory.

The latter's report was similar to that of Tong Zhigang.

Because the Motong Toy Factory was established less than half a year ago, it has only just started and has not yet achieved any significant results.

Everyone can understand if it's just the beginning.

Next up was Hela O'Brien, head of Maple Capital, who reported that Maple Capital's second investment division had earned $1.68 billion.

There's not much to say about this; a brief report will suffice.

Then came the report from Wen Shixuan about the Hongxing Steel Plant, which was somewhat unfamiliar to everyone.

However, after listening, Wang Duoyu took the initiative to applaud and praised him highly:

"In 1984, you applied for twelve patents, but in 1985, you actually applied for eighteen patents, which is quite impressive."

"Keep it up! Our Want Want Group needs more business leaders like you. We need to make money, and we also need to develop technology."

Quack, quack, quack!

Everyone clapped with smiles on their faces, and the meeting room was filled with enthusiastic applause.

However, Zheng Baoyin and his colleagues still had doubts.

Because the Red Star Steel Plant had no output, it simply tried to maintain a balance between income and expenditure, but it couldn't do that every year.

However, Hongxing Steel Plant is able to produce more and more patented technologies, but where are these technologies being used? It's truly puzzling.

After the applause subsided, Xue Lisheng, who was in charge of the Brabus watch factory, immediately took his place.

This year, Brabus is doing much better than last year. Its total domestic revenue hasn't changed much, remaining at 438 million RMB, just 18 million RMB more than last year.

However, compared to only US$500,000 in foreign exchange revenue last year, this year's foreign exchange revenue reached US$6.72 million.

Because the Brabus watch factory has specially trained a group of exceptionally skilled watchmakers, including German engineers recruited from abroad, as well as master craftsmen recruited from Switzerland, Sweden, France, and other countries.

With their help, experienced people mentored new ones, which led to the development of many luxury watches.

These watches were also sold through Pandora stores.

It's essentially equivalent to OEM manufacturing.

There's nothing we can do about it. Why is it that Brabus isn't recognized, while Pandora is recognized by many people?
This is where marketing comes in.

Chirp!

After Xue Lisheng finished his report, everyone applauded.

Although the revenue figures don't seem particularly impressive, they've already done an amazing job.

The domestic market is still developing, and the business of Brabus Watch Factory is also expanding. Being able to maintain such marketing is more impressive than many others.

Starting a business is difficult, but maintaining it is even more difficult!

Next up is the Muscle Shark sports brand, which is managed by Liang Shengzhi, and its revenue figures are much better than last year.

In 1984, after only six months of operation, its revenue just exceeded ten million US dollars.

This year's total revenue exceeded 30 million, totaling 37.92 million US dollars.

Looking at it this way, it doesn't seem that great.

After all, Wang Jianchao earned more than 27 million US dollars in just ten days in the foreign exchange market, while Muscle Shark's annual revenue was only more than 37 million US dollars, which is far more than the sum of its money.

However, the two are not comparable at all.

"Yes, very good!"

Wang Duoyu immediately praised:

"This is the right path. Although it doesn't earn much money and the journey is quite arduous, it's steady and reliable."

The best way to make money is to be steady and reliable; everything else is meaningless.

For example, in that later era, many people have heard that the welfare benefits in Northern Europe are particularly good, and that the national happiness index of these countries is very high.

But in reality, it's because they do have a lot of resources backing them.

Take Norway for example. This country may seem to have little presence, but in reality, it is the world's third-largest natural gas exporter and the eighth-largest oil exporter.

They can make a fortune every year by selling these energy sources.

What do you mean by "I'm the richest person in the world just because I have a piece of cloth on my head"? Norway isn't bad either, okay?

In later years, the Norwegian government's global pension fund had assets of US$1.74 trillion, and in the first half of 2024 alone, it achieved a profit of US$138 billion.

Awesome!

With such high profits, and Norway's total population of only 5.52 million, a rather small population, it's no wonder that the national happiness index is high.

Looking at this so-called Norwegian government global pension fund, its investment approach can be summed up in one word: prudent!
It really is a conservative investment.

With assets totaling 1.74 trillion US dollars, this money has been invested in more than 9,000 listed companies worldwide, as well as other investments, all of which are considered conservative investments.

In short, it's already incredibly impressive that they can maintain an annualized interest rate of 8%.

So even though Muscle Shark doesn't generate much revenue, its steady growth is enough.

Zheng Baoyin and the others were applauding, but they were even more puzzled.

They all felt that Wang Duoyu was a rather complicated person.

For example, he didn't have high requirements for the Muscle Shark sportswear brand, and his requirements for Red Star Steel Plant were even lower.

Very stable!
However, Maple Capital dared to let Hela O'Brien and her team use 20 times leverage to invest in Japanese yen foreign exchange, which was extremely audacious.

Isn't this a contradiction?

They had their doubts, but Wang Duoyu refused to explain.

There's not much to explain.

When an opportunity arises, it's perfectly normal to seize it and earn some pocket money.

However, he also has a prudent investment mindset, knowing that these are the things he should invest in, so there is no contradiction.

After Liang Shengzhi finished his report, the next step was to talk about the Xibeier women's clothing brand, which was under the responsibility of Qu Haiping.

Compared to only 107 stores in 1984, by December 31, 1985, the number of stores in the United States, Europe, and Japan had reached 237. The growth rate was quite rapid.

However, because the number of stores increased, the average daily revenue per store also decreased, averaging $2,627 throughout 1985.

Therefore, the total revenue for the year was US$227 million.

"Brilliant!"

Wen Shih-hsuan was extremely envious. This revenue figure was indeed impressive. Last year it was only over 80 million US dollars, but this year it has already risen to over 200 million. That's amazing.

Unfortunately, their Red Star Steel Plant was destined to only engage in technological research and development.

The meeting room erupted in enthusiastic applause once again, and Qu Haiping humbly remarked that he was just an average person.

After all, Want Want Group also has two major brands, UMA Apparel and Pandora, and at the very least, the sports brand Yuebu is also very impressive.

Sure enough, it was Wei Ruo, the person in charge of Yuebu, who came to report immediately.

"This year, our Yuebu brand has continuously increased its advertising investment, especially in the three major markets of the United States, Europe, and Japan. We have signed many celebrities, and the celebrity advertising fees for this year alone have reached 65 million US dollars."

As soon as Wei Ruolai opened his mouth, a collective gasp filled the conference room.

That's a really high investment.

If celebrities' advertising spending is already so high, and their revenue figures don't improve, they'll definitely go bankrupt.

Tong Zhigang, Hela O'Brien, Qiao Hanliang, and others all turned their heads, genuinely not quite understanding what was going on.

Aside from Tong Zhigang, who has never been abroad and doesn't quite understand Yuebu's advertising, Hela O'Brien and Qiao Hanliang do know a bit about it.

The latter is in Silicon Valley, Los Angeles, while Hela O'Brien is in Manhattan, New York. These two cities are the first and second largest megacities in the United States, so Leap's advertisements are naturally everywhere.

"This year, we added 197 new stores, bringing our total to 359."

"On average, each store's daily revenue increased by $100 compared to last year, which is $7,380. Therefore, Leapmotor's total revenue for the year is $967 million."

hiss!
Wen Shixuan and the others were dumbfounded. This was too amazing!
Only Wang Jianchao and Zheng Baoyin remained relatively calm. It wasn't that their clothing companies were guaranteed to win the Leapfrog Movement, but rather that they already knew the general outline of the situation.

Qu Haiping and Liang Shengzhi knew this, but they were indeed very envious, after all, the gap between them and Yuebu was still quite large.

That's how sportswear brands are; if they get on the right track, they can make a lot of money.

In the original timeline, Reebok, the sportswear brand, achieved an annual revenue of US$307 million in 1985, which reached US$919 million in 1986.

In 1987, with annual revenue of US$1.4 billion, it surpassed Nike's annual revenue of US$1 billion, becoming the world's number one sports shoe brand.

In fact, before 1983, Adidas was the number one global sports shoe brand.

However, in this time and space, due to the rise of Leapmotor, Adidas and Nike have lost a lot of their luck.

Nike, in particular, has already acquired Michael Jordan, the most important superstar in its rise, without imposing too many harsh conditions on him.

This made Michael Jordan very happy with the Leap brand and eager to cooperate.

Despite being associated with a superstar like Michael Jordan, it doesn't mean that Yuebu is guaranteed to be the number one or two global sportswear brand.

Since Reebok in the original timeline was able to surpass Nike in revenue, it's even harder to say in this timeline.

Making some wrong decisions could lead to a decline or even being abandoned by the market.

Chirp!

Wang Duoyu nodded repeatedly in approval.

After investing so much in advertising, the results are finally plentiful.

However, with 359 stores, it's unlikely that further expansion will significantly increase revenue.

Therefore, for those born in 1986, we need to be more careful and prioritize stability.

Of course, profits are not the most important thing; stabilizing the current market is equally important.

Next up is Wang Jianchao. As the head of Pandora, a high-end clothing brand, he is incredibly resourceful in marketing, creating countless strange and wonderful trinkets and accessories.

In fact, Pandora was able to break into the market because of its marketing and advertising, as well as its precious and cute little charms.

For those rich kids, money can't buy what they truly desire.

Pandora always manages to hit the sweet spot with its new products, making them happy to spend their money. It has to be said, they're really something else.

After all, besides being rich, the rich kids are often really boring.

“Unlike last year, Pandora has also entered the European and Japanese markets this year, and has opened a store in Singapore, Hong Kong, Taipei, and Seoul.”

"Let's start with the annual revenue of their four stores in Singapore. Ranked by revenue, Seoul is fourth, with an annual revenue of US$6.78 million."

"Third is Singapore, with an annual revenue of US$7.09 million; Taipei ranks second with a revenue of US$8.97 million; and Hong Kong ranks first with an annual revenue of US$10.39 million."

"In addition to these four stores, there are now a total of eight stores in Japan, with total annual revenue of US$172 million."

When Wang Jianchao finished his report, Tong Zhigang was somewhat confused. It seemed that these funds were not US dollars, but ghost money, and were so worthless.

They make tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of dollars all the time. Goodness, is it really that easy for these rich people to make money?
Of course, Japan is the world's second-largest economy, and with the yen appreciating, their enthusiasm for buying is even higher.

Especially in the following years, Japan went even more crazy.

However, the eight stores in Japan, although they have been in operation for less than a year, have an average revenue that is not as high as those in the United States.

It's fair to say that Pandora is still relatively new to the Japanese market.

"We have a total of thirteen stores in the European market, with annual revenue of US$235 million. This is quite impressive. We didn't expect Pandora to achieve such results in the traditional luxury market; it's truly surprising."

Wang Jianchao laughed quite loudly when he got to this point.

"We've added three stores in the US market compared to last year, but we feel that the US market is nearing saturation and it's difficult to see further growth."

"Of course, with the increase in stores and more promotions, our revenue has also increased significantly, with the average daily revenue per store reaching $33,900. This is much less than last year, because last year only lasted for six months."

"So this year in the US market, with a total of 55 stores, revenue reached $680 million. Adding in the European market and other sectors, the total annual revenue is $1.12 billion."

clap clap clap!
When Wang Jianchao reported this data, everyone applauded enthusiastically and looked very happy.

This data is incredible.

"Jianchao, you're awesome! You're the coolest this year!"

Qu Haiping couldn't help but whistle, and Hela O'Brien and the others laughed and whistled along.

With such revenue figures, and considering their outrageous profit margins, Pandora is making an incredibly high amount of money.

Of course, because many of these luxury items were still given away, the profit margin still decreased significantly.

For example, that gold-plated leather bag, to be honest, it's really excellent, but it's also quite expensive.

Currently, Pandora has the highest revenue; the question is whether Yuma Apparel's revenue will surpass it.

However, when Zheng Baoyin began his report, Wang Duoyu was surprised to find that revenue from the domestic market had actually increased significantly.

Because he remembered that the revenue in the domestic market last year was 487 million RMB, but in 1985 it actually rose to 612 million RMB.

Wow, that's quite an exaggerated increase.

After all, Yuma Apparel now has an annual revenue of nearly 500 million RMB, but unexpectedly, in 1985, it actually broke through to 600 million RMB. Amazing!

Yuma Apparel's global overseas market is somewhat different. Compared to 1984, there has been growth, but not much.

In 1984 it was US$583 million, but by 1985 it was only US$666 million.

This data sounds good, but after comparison, I'm still a bit frustrated.

The advertising campaign has increased the number of stores, but the revenue figures haven't risen much, which is definitely not good.

Wang Duoyu didn't ask for too much; this revenue figure was already very good.

Yuma Clothing is just a very ordinary, affordable clothing brand, and it certainly can't be compared to Pandora.

"We need to work even harder this year, putting more effort into advertising and marketing, and also into sales training for our employees, especially in closing techniques. We must teach those employees those techniques."

Upon hearing Wang Duoyu's words, Zheng Baoyin nodded repeatedly.

Qu Haiping and the others nodded thoughtfully, clearly aware of this as well.

All sales, regardless of the product, require certain skills to close a deal successfully.

For high-end clothing brands like Pandora, the sales techniques are different, which is quite different from those for ordinary, affordable products.

Customers who can walk into Pandora stores are mostly consumers who can afford to shop there, and there are many such people, but most people who can earn money generally don't come to these places.

Of course, nouveau riche are an exception.

Therefore, when customers walk into a Pandora store, sales staff need to be very careful when pushing for a sale.

Of course, sales techniques are one thing, but Qu Haiping and his team are now more concerned about Wang Duoyu's attitude.

To everyone's surprise, Yuma Apparel did not achieve good results in the past year, but even so, Wang Duoyu did not criticize Zheng Baoyin.

From this perspective, Wang Duoyu isn't a very strict boss.

Regardless of the circumstances, most of Want Want Group's revenue for this year has already been reported.

The remaining part will be reported by Lu Qingsong.

Lu Qingsong was there to report on Maple Leaf Holdings' revenue in place of the Wang Meili and Wang Meihe sisters.

"In addition to Maple Capital, Maple Leaf Holdings has also established fifteen financial companies in Tokyo, London, Paris, Berlin, Taipei, and Singapore to fully promote this appreciation of the yen."

Upon hearing Lu Qingsong's words, everyone exclaimed in surprise.

Even Zheng Baoyin and Wang Jianchao were dumbfounded, staring at their ninth uncle (maternal uncle) with disbelief, and then looked at Lu Qingsong.

Wow, from London to Paris, and then to Tokyo, Taipei and Singapore, that's crossing many time zones!

Can fifteen financial companies be effectively regulated?
Does this matter?
With trustworthy people, supervision can be done very well. In addition, there is a professional accounting team, and the family information of the relevant persons in charge is also in the possession of Lu Qingsong and his team.

If there's any inclination, then there's no need for further discussion; just issue the order to arrest them.

Of course, with so much money and the ability to make so much money, these people in charge must be incredibly stupid to do something so foolish.

There are a total of 15 financial companies, and like Maple Capital, they all entered the market with loans ranging from ten million to fifty million US dollars, and invested by leveraging their capital.

In just a few months, these fifteen financial companies have all made a considerable amount of money.

Some achieved profits as high as $180,000, while others made as little as $600 million.

Hela O'Brien was stunned to hear that two of their subsidiaries were making more money than Maple Capital.

Others might not understand, but how could he, as a professional in the financial industry, not understand?
Just like the absurd things he just reported about Maple Capital, wouldn't those financial companies in Tokyo and London also experience them?

Regardless of whether they had experienced it or not, Lu Qingsong finished his report in a very calm and collected manner.

"The average revenue of each financial company reached US$1.193 billion, so the total revenue of these 15 companies was US$17.895 billion. All of these funds have now been safely returned to their accounts."

The entire sum of US$17.8 billion was transferred into several Swiss banks.

Although this method isn't entirely foolproof, by going through a Swiss bank and transferring the money elsewhere, everything can be "laundered."

Of course, this doesn't mean clearing my name, but rather trying to avoid being investigated by those with ulterior motives.

Even if no one might investigate, Wang Duoyu was afraid of trouble, so he would rather spend more money to erase these traces completely.

In a few years, with the rise of the internet globally, the flow of these funds will become even faster, and the traces will be erased even more quickly.

In the summer of 1977, the construction and development of the Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication Network System was completed and it was officially put into operation.

This is a non-profit organization established to address the inability of financial communications between countries to keep pace with the rapid growth of international payment and settlement. It is responsible for designing, establishing, and managing the SWIFT international network to enable the transmission and routing of international financial information among its members.

Our country also joined in 1983, and it was officially launched and put into use last May.

Therefore, interbank trade between major international banks is relatively simple and can be done directly on a computer.

However, this still requires very advanced technology.

Wang Duoyu wasn't worried about the Swiss banks being able to withstand the scrutiny of those institutions, because once the money was transferred out of several Swiss banks and back to banks in Hong Kong, the traces had been completely erased.

Chirp!

Chirp!

Thunderous applause filled the meeting room. Zheng Baoyin and his colleagues were extremely excited, as this sum of money was undoubtedly the largest ever received by the Want Want Group since its inception.

After the applause subsided, Wang Jianchao immediately said:
"Uncle Jiu, you already have so much money, why do you still need us to donate?"

"You don't even know how to spend all this money, do you?"

Haha!

Upon hearing this, everyone burst into laughter.

Indeed, with so much money, I really don't know what to do with it.

Wang Duoyu glared at the other person and said irritably:
"How could I not know how to spend it? This little bit of money is a sum I painstakingly snatched from the jaws of hungry wolves like Wall Street. I can't just spend it recklessly in a short period of time."

"But don't worry, I've already figured out how to spend this money, and it still won't be enough."

what?
not enough?
Zheng Baoyin, Qiao Hanliang, Wei Ruolai and others were all dumbfounded. 17.895 billion US dollars, and it still wasn't enough to spend?

How much money would be enough to cover these expenses?

What they didn't know, Wang Duoyu knew very well, that it really wasn't enough to cover the expenses.

Because these funds will be dispersed, and there will be many different destinations.

17.8 billion US dollars sounds like a lot, and it is indeed a very large sum of money, but it has never been pooled together and has always been scattered among many different banks.

The first destination for these funds is to enter the Saudi Empire's bank accounts through hundreds or thousands of channels, where they will purchase large quantities of oil, costing at least ten billion US dollars.

The reason is simple: current international crude oil prices are too cheap.

And the price will continue to drop.

According to the original timeline, the price would drop to at least below ten US dollars per barrel, roughly to nine and a half US dollars per barrel.

This period lasted until April of 1986.

After all, the Saudi empire is engaging in 'massive dumping,' which is a strong counterattack against the deceptive practices of OPEC member countries.

It can't be that all the money goes to OPEC and its other member countries while the Saudi empire gets nothing, can it?

The agreement was made to limit crude oil production in order to increase international crude oil prices. After all, oil is a non-renewable resource that is becoming increasingly scarce, and we must consider the long-term prospects for future generations.

Therefore, the Saudi Empire's punishment this time will not last long, at most until April.

Wang Duoyu's plan is to spend the 10 billion US dollars over the next few months, all of which will be used to purchase spot oil.

There is definitely a shortage of oil in China, and even if there isn't, there are many countries in the world that are short of oil.

Stockpiling so much crude oil means we can sell it later in the next few years when prices rise.

(End of this chapter)