America: My Time

Chapter 173 Calculation
Chapter 173 Schemes

Regarding the issues in Hong Kong, John did not intend to personally intervene or make any public appearances. He planned to manipulate everything from behind the scenes to alleviate the pressure on Pacific Investment and lower the guard of HSBC and Standard Chartered. Upon returning to Japan, John secretly contacted Pacific Investment in Hong Kong and arranged for them to travel there.

Pacific Investment was quite surprised by their boss's request. Their boss had just visited Hong Kong, and now he was summoning them and asking them to go to Japan. Their instincts told them that there must be something big going on, something big, otherwise this situation wouldn't have occurred.

Despite their many doubts and speculations, this did not hinder their actions. Soon, Yuan Tianfan, CEO of Pacific Investment, appeared at John's estate in Japan!
"Boss, is something important that made you rush me to Japan?"

“Yes, there is something important, and I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but the negotiations between the two sides are about to begin. Based on my understanding of the British, I’m not optimistic about the outcome this time. So, there will definitely be fluctuations in Hong Kong’s economy. You know about the Hong Kong Telecom incident before, and HSBC and Standard Chartered were the masterminds behind it. I want to take this opportunity to teach them a lesson.”

"Hiss! Boss, no way! If the negotiations fail, the entire Hong Kong economy will be thrown into turmoil!"

"Yes, if such a situation occurs, Hong Kong's economy will indeed be in trouble. The real estate market will collapse, and even the currency may face a crisis. Didn't HSBC and Standard Chartered dare to scheme against me? This time, we'll teach them a profound lesson. Also, keep a close eye on Hongkong Land. When they can no longer withstand the collapse of the real estate market, that will be the time for us to acquire all of Hongkong Land's properties in Hong Kong. Don't worry about the funding; I'll prepare it for you. I've already prepared the loan from the Bank of Japan, and it will be deposited into the Hong Kong account soon, in US dollars! Once the opportunity arises, we can use the exchange rate of the US dollar to catch HSBC and Standard Chartered off guard and let them know that we are not to be trifled with!"

Upon hearing his boss's words, Yuan Tianfan gasped, worried for HSBC and Standard Chartered. They were in deep trouble this time; his boss's plan was too ruthless.

"Doesn't it seem a bit harsh? This is the price HSBC and Standard Chartered have to pay. Since they dared to scheme against me, they have to pay the price. Even the British side had to compromise, so how could they not pay any price at all? If I wasn't afraid of alerting them, I would have been willing to take a big bite out of their stocks, instead of just targeting the currency exchange rate! However, everything is up to you. If you think you can also deliver a heavy blow to them in the stock market, feel free to do so!"

John didn't want to alert Standard Chartered or arouse their suspicion, but that didn't mean he had to compromise. Sometimes, being more decisive and ruthless would make them believe he had no designs on them. If he kept giving in, those bastards would think there was a big problem!
"Boss, as long as we have enough funds, we can definitely teach HSBC and Standard Chartered a lesson. There's a lot to be gained in both exchange rates and stocks. However, once we make a move, Standard Chartered will immediately remove us from the board of directors!"

"Hmph, don't worry about that. Even if they're removed from the list, it's no big deal. We control 60% of the shares, which is the biggest constraint on them. If they push us too far, they won't have an easy time either. With so many shares in hand, it's incredibly easy for us to mess with them in the stock market. If they don't know what's good for them, we won't give them any face!"

John paused here, gathered his thoughts, and continued, "Tianfan, how well do you know Standard Chartered? If we launch a surprise attack on Standard Chartered, can we catch them off guard and complete the acquisition?"

John was somewhat tempted at this moment. The upcoming storm in Hong Kong was also an opportunity to acquire Standard Chartered. If possible, he wanted to make a move, at least to acquire the stocks held by retail investors in the stock market!
“Boss, we still don’t have enough manpower. Although this might be a good opportunity, we are not fully prepared. Even if we acquire a controlling stake in Standard Chartered, there will be risks. It’s best to be cautious and take the opportunity to acquire shares from retail investors to increase our influence over Standard Chartered. As long as we control enough Standard Chartered shares, even Standard Chartered won’t dare to make any rash moves.”

Hearing this, John couldn't help but sigh. He realized he had been a bit impulsive. Although he had the Japanese bank as a source of funds, the amount of money needed to completely acquire Standard Chartered was too huge. Even if he didn't have to worry about funding, he hadn't made full preparations. The price he paid for forcing things was too high, and it was not worth it.

"Fine, let's take this opportunity to raise our stake in Standard Chartered and give them a warning. If Standard Chartered has any problems, just tell them directly that this is what happens when you scheme against us. Next time, things won't end so easily! As for HSBC, we don't need to give them any face. They dared to be so arrogant before, so they have to take responsibility for their actions."

"Yes, boss, I will arrange everything and won't let you down!" "I trust you to handle things. You are in charge of everything. If any unexpected situations arise, you can handle them yourself without consulting me. I believe you can manage!" John was well aware that market changes were beyond his control. If something unexpected happened, waiting for his instructions would be too late and would cause unnecessary losses. Therefore, he directly delegated the authority to Yuan Tianfan on this matter, letting him resolve it on his own. He only cared about the result, not the process!

"OK, I see!"

"Good. Don't rush back yet. Take some time to travel around Japan first, so as not to alert those bastards and cause any changes in the situation. If you need anything, feel free to contact me. You can use the funds in Hong Kong; I've already spoken to them!"

John's plan was to cause trouble, specifically at HSBC and Standard Chartered. To Yuan Tianfan, his boss seemed a bit too reckless. While the plan was feasible, it was far too extreme—creating direct antagonism with two of Hong Kong's biggest banks simply to retaliate. Everything could be concealed before the operation, but once it began, everything would be exposed. How would HSBC and Standard Chartered, playing on their home turf, react then?

However, one thing is certain: our boss is determined to take over Standard Chartered. Will making a move beforehand cause a commotion? Doesn't our boss have any concerns about doing this?

There were naturally concerns, but John's thoughts differed from Yuan Tianfan's. The more openly he attacked Standard Chartered, the lower the other party's guard would be, and the more the other party would think that he had no intention of acquiring Standard Chartered. This would give him enough time to secretly lay the groundwork and gradually erode Standard Chartered's shares.

From another perspective, if someone truly intended to acquire Standard Chartered, they would be extremely cautious and wouldn't rashly launch an attack, especially openly and honestly—that would be foolish and attract the attention of the target company. John exploited this psychological reaction to launch a new round of maneuvering against Standard Chartered!

Pacific Investment didn't originally need to hold a large stake; 5.1% would have been enough, along with a board seat. However, Standard Chartered had ulterior motives and provoked them. If Pacific Investment didn't retaliate and pretended ignorance, it would only make Standard Chartered more wary. It was better to seize the opportunity to strike a decisive blow, making money while simultaneously annoying them and acquiring more shares – a win-win situation!
No matter how good the plan is, risks still exist. Reality is not a game; everything is not up to us. In today's environment, anything can happen, and accidents can always occur unexpectedly. Therefore, John understands that even the best plans need to be adjusted over time. Ever since he was targeted by those old guys, all his plans have been forced to change.

When John returned to Japan, the old guys on Wall Street were once again baffled by his actions. There are no secrets on Wall Street; they naturally knew that Morgan had helped John acquire Lanai, Hawaii. When the old guys learned about Lanai, they were all completely bewildered. It was just a large farm that had been consistently losing money, and now John wanted to buy it—was he trying to farm it?

John is not even twenty years old yet. Even if he is interested in the farm, he shouldn't be making such a big investment. It's all too strange. The old guys can't understand it, but they have to face it head-on. After all, they are dealing with a crazy kid. And this bastard's investments have been smooth sailing without a single failure. How can they not be wary and worry that there might be something wrong with it?
However, something even more surprising happened. After the acquisition of 7-Eleven in Taiwan, these old guys' eyes gleamed with rage. Good heavens, this kid is really going to make a name for himself in the retail industry. With their keen insight, how could they not see through John's plan? This was clearly a precaution against a sneak attack, preventing them from seizing the opportunity to choke them.

It's outrageous! In the eyes of these old guys, John is such a despicable bastard. He didn't give them any chance at all, even doing retail first, cutting off all their hopes of making a move.

These old guys will seize any opportunity, even if they can't operate openly, they'll secretly sabotage John's development, preventing him from perfecting himself. Unfortunately, their plans have repeatedly failed; John isn't giving them that chance, instead doing everything ahead of them. Unless these old guys are willing to actively enter the fray and participate in this retail battle, this battle for luxury brands!

(End of this chapter)