Restart life

Chapter 210 0207 [The Era of Frenzied Investment]

On the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month, Chen Guiliang flew back to Chengdu and then took a car back to his hometown in the countryside.

The main purpose was to visit relatives.

Especially my great-grandmother (my father's maternal grandmother), she won't live for many more years, every time we see her is one less time we'll see her.

Chen Guiliang took the opportunity to go to the hospital for a full-body checkup, using it as an excuse to bring his cousin Feng Tao along. He hoped to find something wrong with him so he wouldn't end up with stomach cancer.

The examination results showed that Feng Tao was in excellent health...

Baiyun and Heitu made another appearance at this year's Spring Festival Gala: Your grandpa will always be your grandpa!

Chen Guiliang sat in front of the TV with his parents and grandmother, laughing heartily.

On the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, Chen Guiliang left his hometown and returned to the city.

Grandma boiled ten eggs for him, and Mom stuffed him with lots of cured meat and sausages.

My father rode his Jialing motorcycle, taking Chen Guiliang to the city to catch a bus.

Too lazy to wait for a long-distance bus, and with tickets not being easy to buy, he simply called a taxi.

Once you leave the countryside and come to the city, time seems to speed up all at once.

From the moment he got on the bus, Chen Guiliang was constantly making phone calls and sending text messages: venture capital firms were coming, and four or five of them were interested in ByteDance.

The taxi driver observed Chen Guiliang through the rearview mirror throughout the entire journey.

Chen Guiliang hung up the phone and reminded the driver, "Driver, watch your step and don't stare at me."

"Are you Boss Chen?" the driver asked.

Chen Guiliang smiled and said, "Happy Chinese New Year."

"Is it really Boss Chen? You're quite famous in Longdu!" the driver exclaimed excitedly.

While chatting casually with the driver, Tao Xue sent another text message, asking when Chen Guiliang would return to Beijing.

Chen Guiliang chatted with the driver while texting Tao Xue.

At 5 p.m., I finally got back to Peking University.

Room 404 is empty; none of my roommates have come.

The following day, he visited ByteDance and Game Science to extend his greetings to the employees who stayed at the company during the Spring Festival. He brought them red envelopes and planned to treat them to dinner that evening.

Chang Zhongxiang, who usually handles the company's finances and has been in contact with venture capitalists lately, came to Chen Guiliang's office and said, "Venture capital firms have gone crazy. From what I've heard, they didn't even take a break during the Spring Festival. Some firms started negotiations as early as the second day of the Lunar New Year!"

"Is there some big movement in the United States?" Chen Guiliang asked.

Chang Zhongxiang nodded and said, "Large-scale venture capital in the United States started after Christmas last year. Especially after New Year's Day, several huge investments were made within two months. There were rumors about Facebook's Series B financing before Christmas, but there has been no concrete news yet. I guess the amount of financing is too large for one or two companies to handle."

If the US goes crazy, China has to follow suit!
"Keep an eye on domestic and international news, we'll talk slowly," Chen Guiliang instructed.

……

They've really gone mad.

Just after the Lantern Festival, news broke that SoftBank Ventures Asia had invested $500 million in 58.com.

Although details such as equity and valuation were not disclosed, the investment still caused a stir in the internet industry. It is widely speculated that the post-investment valuation is over $3000 million.

58.com was only founded a little over two months ago!
This is even more outrageous than Chen Guiliang's financing round last year.

Then, within just half a month, two more venture capital deals were completed.

Chinabbs received a $1000 million investment and officially changed its name to Daqi.com, with a post-investment valuation of approximately $5000 million.

Qihoo received $2000 million in investment, valuing the company at approximately $1 million post-investment.

Chen Guiliang is currently reading financial news; the article's title is: "2006: Venture Capital or 'Frenzied Investment'?"

The article was first published in a print financial magazine and was quickly reprinted by major portal websites.

This financial article has gone viral.

The phrase "crazy investment" attracted a large number of readers, and the content sparked heated discussions among netizens.

Even the middle-aged women who go grocery shopping in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen know what venture capital firms are: they come to China to give away money.

"Having just passed through what VC (venture capital) managers called a 'crazy' 2005, Rolling Stone Mobile announced at the start of the new year that it had successfully raised $3000 million..."

"Following the news of ChinaBBS, Qihoo, 58.com, and others receiving huge amounts of funding, people were filled with the question of 'who will be the next Baidu'..."

"After nearly five years of silence, venture capital in China seems to be about to usher in another peak period. And the IT and new media industries are still leading this wave of venture capital boom... How do those VC managers in suits and ties, carrying laptops, but with hundreds of millions of dollars in their hands, decide to give that money to lucky entrepreneurs?"

"In 2006, how many more new darlings like Ma Yun and Chen Tianqiao will emerge? What kind of power struggle will entrepreneurs and VCs be in? Amidst the frenzied VC frenzy, we try to uncover the stories behind them..."

Chen Guiliang finished reading the article, smiled, and closed the news page.

The new year has just begun, and the word "crazy investment" has already defined this year.

The person who actually sought venture capital for ByteDance was Zhang Suyang, a director sent by IDG.

Zhang Suyang called and said, "IDG and DFJ plan to follow up this time, and Sequoia, SoftBank, Carlyle, and DCM also have investment intentions."

Chen Guiliang said, "I think we should determine the valuation of Tudou.com first. Hasn't IDG always been interested in Tudou.com?"

"Sigh, I understand what you mean," Zhang Suyang sighed.

Subsequently, Zhang Suyang acted as a go-between, bringing together GGV Capital and JAFCO Asia to contact and negotiate with Wang Wei of Tudou.com.

The conversation proceeded very quickly.

Because Tudou.com's equity, finances, and data are readily available, preliminary due diligence can be completed in one or two days.

Three investment institutions jointly invested $850 million, bringing Tudou.com's post-investment valuation to $4000 million!
There wouldn't have been this many even before the Spring Festival.

Firstly, Tudou.com saw another increase in users during this Spring Festival.

Secondly, the series of venture capital deals drove those investment managers even crazier!
Zhang Suyang called again, and Chen Guiliang said, "You guys need to figure out the valuation of Bailian Technology first." Without figuring it out, there's no way to have any substantive negotiations.

But how should we value Bailian Technology?
Chen Guiliang didn't care about any of that; he had to go to class.

……

Today's class is Professor Wu's: "Innovation Management".

Professor Wu currently serves as the Vice Dean of the Guanghua School of Management at Peking University and was the founder of the Department of Strategic Management at Peking University. He supervises graduate students while also teaching undergraduate courses.

This year, Professor Wu has two research projects.

These are "Foreign VC Investment Strategies in China" and "Technology Enterprise Innovation and Venture Capital Matching Model".

Chen Guiliang was very popular at Guanghua College; even when he was locking his bicycle, classmates would come over to say hello.

"Good morning, Mr. Chen. Is ByteDance raising funds again?"

"Chen Guiliang, I saw in the news yesterday that Tudou.com seems to have secured a huge amount of funding. ByteDance's valuation is probably going to go up again, right?"

“Student Chen…”

Chen Guiliang chatted with them all the way to the classroom.

He chose this course partly because he genuinely wanted to learn something, and partly to earn credits.

Last semester's final exam included a major question that directly provided materials and asked students to analyze the technological innovations and business model design of the school's intranet.

Chen Guiliang got full marks on that question!

Professor Wu even gave a special comment on the paper: "The analysis is insightful and the content is comprehensive. I was greatly inspired."

"Chen Guiliang, here, I've saved you a seat!" a girl waved.

"Thank you," Chen Guiliang said with a smile.

The boys around her were more or less jealous.

Because this girl is very good at dressing up, and I heard she is the daughter of some official.

But Chen Guiliang remained unmoved, mainly because of looks; he preferred exceptionally beautiful women. He only wanted to befriend those who were generally pretty.

"You're here so early?" Chen Guiliang said casually.

The girl's name is Wan Nannan.

Seeing Chen Guiliang approach, she smiled broadly, took the book she had used to reserve a seat, and said, "If you don't come early, you won't be able to get a seat in Professor Wu's class."

The boy next to her said sourly, "Wan Nannan came to the classroom early to save you a seat. Aren't you going to thank her?"

"Thanks," Chen Guiliang said, completely ignoring the boy.

Wan Nannan said happily, "No need to thank me, classmates should help each other."

The boy next door pursed his lips, wanting to say something sarcastic, but ultimately held back.

Because saying more would only make things awkward.

Students at Guanghua College are generally arrogant, and they have a high rate of studying abroad. Regardless of gender or number, they all give off an air of haughtiness. Sometimes, they are not even aware of it themselves; it is entirely a subconscious behavior.

And what about the students in the Yuanpei Class?

The saying "I won't marry a man like Yuan Pei" says it all.

So far, only Chen Guiliang has broken this curse.

Guo Feng could barely be considered one, as he was carried away by Chen Guiliang.

“Venture capital is really crazy this year,” Wan Nannan said enthusiastically. “Since January, there have been nine investments exceeding $5 million.”

Chen Guiliang nodded: "He is indeed a bit crazy."

Wan Nannan suddenly changed the subject: "My dad wants me to study abroad after my undergraduate degree. Do you think I should stay in China?"

"That's up to you." Chen Guiliang didn't dare to provoke him.

Although I don't know exactly who her father is, I've heard that he holds a pretty high official position.

The boy next door chimed in again: "I think we should still study in the US. Economic research in the US is much more advanced than in China. Especially the financial system, which is far superior to China's. We should learn advanced knowledge in the US and then come back to serve our country."

Chen Guiliang praised, "This student is very conscientious."

After chatting for a few more minutes, Professor Wu arrived.

Professor Wu began by saying, "On my way to the classroom, I received a call from a friend. Another venture capital investment has been confirmed today. This is the 10th such investment this year, exceeding $500 million."

"Wow!"

The students gasped in surprise.

Professor Wu laughed and said, "I've never seen anything like this before. It's even crazier than back in 2000! Is Chen Guiliang here?"

"Yes," Chen Guiliang said, raising his hand.

All the students in the classroom looked at him.

Professor Wu said, "You've come at a good time. Once ByteDance completes its Series B financing, could you give me some less sensitive firsthand information? If you're willing, I hope you can join my new research group."

“I probably don’t have that much time,” Chen Guiliang said.

Professor Wu joked, "The amount of time doesn't matter, just provide real-world examples."

“Okay,” Chen Guiliang immediately agreed.

He definitely won't fail this course.

In your third year, you can also take other courses taught by Professor Wu, and you'll probably get high marks there as well.

(End of this chapter)