America: My Time

Chapter 63 The Raptor Crosses the River
Chapter Sixty-Three: The Fierce Dragon Crosses the River

Entering the personal computer market requires a high degree of self-reliance. Although the chip market is currently dominated by Intel and AMD, John doesn't want to use their chips. These two companies are notorious for their manipulative tactics, and IBM holds a stake in Intel. Using Intel chips would be a bad thing for his company; he could easily be taken advantage of by Intel.

When it comes to chips, the most heartbreaking example is Motorola. This company had a great opportunity but squandered it. If Motorola had just put in a little more effort and invested more in semiconductor chips, it wouldn't have had to be so cautious!
"Damn Motorola, if you had put in a little more effort, I wouldn't be so exhausted, having to consider the entire production and R&D of personal computers, and wasting my time and energy on chip development." The thought of building a semiconductor foundry gave John a headache; he needed talent, a lot of talent.

"It seems that talent matters should be handled by professionals. Headhunting companies are the best choice. If I had to handle everything myself, I would never be able to manage so many things, even if I worked myself to death. In the past, I had neither money nor reputation, so even if I hired a headhunting company, it wouldn't have yielded good results. Now everything is different!"

After careful consideration, John made a new decision: if he didn't have the talent, he would poach it from headhunting firms. He believed that talent was essential for development, and the semiconductor industry couldn't afford to fall behind for too long. Now was the perfect time to act; once the contract manufacturing business was established, anything was possible.

Chips are extremely important. They are needed in arcade games, home video game consoles, handheld game consoles, personal computers, and even future laptops and mobile phones. It's not too late to invest in the semiconductor industry now. As long as you're willing to invest heavily, you'll reap the rewards, after all, you hold the information of the future. The biggest fear in research isn't investing a lot of capital, but going down the wrong path. As long as you know the right direction, a larger investment is not a big deal.

When John approached Hongkong Land expressing his desire to acquire Hongkong Lighting, Hongkong Land's reaction was somewhat unbelievable. At that time, Hongkong Real Estate was still in a downward trend, and because the negotiations had not yet yielded results, the entire Hongkong Real Estate was in a deep hole. At this moment, an American took the initiative to come to their door to acquire Hongkong Lighting.

Is Hong Kong Electric important to Hongkong Land? Not really. As long as the price is right, they are not willing to sell. Hongkong Land is currently in a bad situation and is operating at a loss. Although Hongkong Electric is somewhat reluctant, considering Hongkong Land's financial situation, Hongkong Land ultimately agreed to the transaction.

When John mentioned Hong Kong Telecom, they also indicated that they were open to discussion. John was surprised by the British company's reaction. He had thought it would take some time for repeated negotiations, but the process went so smoothly that he couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

Although I have some understanding of the future, my understanding of Hong Kong now is still very limited, and I don't understand the thoughts of British capital. Perhaps from now on, British capital will have the idea of ​​withdrawing from Hong Kong.

Judging from the British investors' reaction, John realized he had overestimated their capabilities, or rather, they had already prepared to withdraw and anticipate the worst. Although the negotiations were still ongoing, the British investors were ready for a complete retreat. If he waited until October to acquire the other properties under the Landmark Group, it might not be a problem; by then, the property market would experience another sharp decline. Thinking of this, John couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

The headhunting firm's speed is indeed astonishing. In just a few days, they have already completed the poaching of talent from Hong Kong. What is shocking is that they actually targeted HSBC and successfully recruited Yuan Tianfan to become the CEO of Pacific Investment Company, which was registered not long ago and successfully acquired British-owned Hong Kong Electric and Hong Kong Telecom!

Pacific Investment Management is John's publicly known investment company in Hong Kong. This move has had a significant impact on Hong Kong, especially on HSBC, which disapproves of it. In HSBC's eyes, Hong Kong is their territory, and the emergence of Pacific Investment Management will disrupt HSBC's plans.

Upon their first meeting, Yuan Tianfan was quite shocked by his boss's youth. The reason he joined the newly established Xiangjiang Investment was precisely because his boss delegated authority to the company. John's personnel policy was to trust those he employed and not to employ those he didn't trust. Since he had chosen Yuan Tianfan as the CEO of Pacific Investment, he trusted him, and with Xiangjiang having its own financial company overseeing the process, there was no need to worry about anything going wrong.

When discussing the development plans for Hong Kong, John said, "This time, our Pacific Investments successfully acquired Hong Kong Electric and Hong Kong Telecom, which can be considered as creating a grudge with HSBC. Knowing the old Scottish man's character, he will definitely not let us off the hook and will definitely cause us trouble. Therefore, the company's funds will not go through HSBC, but through Standard Chartered. We will use all the profits from Hong Kong Electric and Hong Kong Telecom to acquire Standard Chartered shares and become a Standard Chartered director!" "Don't worry, boss, I will handle it carefully!"

"Okay, I trust you to handle things. If HSBC gets too arrogant, don't worry. We're not pushovers either. We can teach them a lesson. Once they leave Hong Kong, HSBC is just a paper tiger. We don't need to be afraid of them. You should also keep an eye on Hong Kong Properties. If the timing is right, you can inquire with Hongkong Land about their acquisition of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel!"

HSBC now is far less powerful than it will be in the future. It only dominates in Hong Kong. Outside of Hong Kong, it is not even as strong as Standard Chartered. At least Standard Chartered has a strong presence in the UK and South Africa, while HSBC is far behind. HSBC has only just begun its overseas expansion. If HSBC insists on causing trouble for itself, it can cause trouble for HSBC in the US as well!

Yuan Tianfan had some understanding of his boss's power. After all, the battle between Game World and Warner Bros. had been quite a spectacle. To rise to the top of the gaming industry by overriding this Hollywood giant demonstrated the immense strength behind him. Moreover, his boss also controlled television stations and newspapers—such media power!

Although HSBC dominates the Hong Kong banking sector overall, Standard Chartered is not without the ability to fight back. John's decision to make Pacific Investment a stake in Standard Chartered not only allows him to leverage Standard Chartered's power but also enables him to strategically position himself within Standard Chartered, making it a visible force while allowing the hidden investment to remain in the shadows, fulfilling its mission in secret and waiting for the final moment to launch a fatal blow against the enemy.

After completing the acquisition, John, accompanied by Yuan Tianfan and Huang Xizhao, visited the Huo family. This Hong Kong tycoon had been unable to visit before due to time constraints during the acquisition of RTV, and it would be impolite if he did nothing this time!

The Hong Kong tycoons were all aware of John, this American who had suddenly appeared in Hong Kong, and they knew some of the more public information about him. Before John acquired Hong Kong Electric and Hong Kong Telecom, they didn't take him seriously, thinking his target was entertainment and media, which had little to do with them. But when John swiftly completed the acquisition of Hong Kong Electric and Hong Kong Telecom and reached an agreement with the British capital, they realized that this young man's ambitions were not as simple as they had imagined, and that it wasn't just about running a media and entertainment business!
As for John's other investments in Hong Kong, none of the tycoons would pay much attention. These days, most Hong Kong tycoons are primarily focused on real estate. As long as the other party isn't involved in real estate, there's not much of a problem. Their eyes are fixed on real estate; even the Bao family has abandoned their businesses. Unfortunately, the real estate market is currently experiencing a dramatic decline. Many people are interested in targeting British capital, but they have some reservations. John's move has directly disrupted many people's plans!
The most infuriating parties were HSBC and Li Ka-shing. HSBC planned to support Li Ka-shing as its representative in Hong Kong. If British capital were to withdraw, some of the assets they controlled would be left to Li Ka-shing. This is why Li Ka-shing was able to take over Hutchison Whampoa. Without HSBC's support, he would not have had the power to swallow Hutchison Whampoa.

John's sudden appearance and attack have disrupted HSBC's plans. Although HSBC is keen to target John's investment in Hong Kong, this investment has a US background, so even HSBC has some reservations.

HSBC is currently expanding globally, and any attempt to obstruct it at this time would be extremely detrimental to HSBC! No matter how much HSBC resents John's Pacific Investments in Hong Kong, it must proceed with caution and dare not act rashly. Even the slightest mistake could lead to serious trouble for HSBC!

John is just a young man, impetuous enough to do anything. A young man who can stand up to Warner in the US; a young man who can borrow two billion from Japan—his recklessness could bring disastrous consequences to HSBC. Once HSBC is targeted by such a young man, the trouble will be endless. HSBC won't act without absolute certainty!

"Only a mighty dragon dares to cross the river," this saying perfectly describes someone like John, who dared to invest heavily in Hong Kong, especially during a period of decline. Such a young man needs to be treated with caution. Most importantly, HSBC doesn't belong to Sir Michael Sandberg alone; even if he wanted to oppose John, the board wouldn't allow it.

(End of this chapter)