Reborn in 08, a heretical cultivator starting a business

Chapter 128 A Big Move: A Blow to Alibaba, Hijacking Tencent!
"What? The financial crisis has broken out!"

The employees in Alibaba's investment department panicked, pulling out their phones and staring in disbelief:

[LEHMAN goes bankrupt!]

$6130 billion in debt!

The financial tsunami has swept the globe!

[Systemic risk!]

……

Looking at these news reports, ordinary people may still harbor illusions.

I don't think it's a big deal; it's all American stuff, far removed from us, and has nothing to do with us.

But the top executives of BAT (Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent) and the elites of Alibaba's investment department understood what this meant in an instant, and they were all terrified:

"The global financial crisis has really arrived, and it has indeed erupted!"

"The fourth largest investment bank has gone bankrupt, with more than 600 billion US dollars in debt. It's all over, all over."

"Sigh! Half a year ago, I felt that things were getting increasingly strange on Old Mi's side, and now it's really come to a head."

"This is not just an American issue, it's a global crisis!"

"It should have exploded a long time ago. We had been suppressing it and keeping it a secret, but now we can't suppress it anymore and it has completely exploded."

"There's no way around it. Who can hold onto a debt of over 6000 billion US dollars?"

"Lehman Brothers was cunning; they simply declared bankruptcy, and the whole world was thrown into a systemic financial crisis as a result."

"To be honest, the key right now is to save ourselves and survive the financial crisis. Tencent wouldn't dare to invest another 20 billion yuan in Vipshop!"

"Yes, once the financial crisis breaks out, the market value of all the giants will plummet, or even be halved."

"Tencent's market value was 150 billion US dollars at the beginning of the year. I estimate that it will drop to 100 billion or even lower in less than two months."

"Under these circumstances, Tencent is too busy taking care of itself to invest 20 billion in Vipshop, let alone strategically contain Alibaba. This is the only good thing!"

Hearing the words of the crowd, Lu Qinghuai's face turned ashen:

"Still have the mind to manage Tencent? Take a look at Alibaba first!"

"The global financial crisis has had the greatest impact on the foreign trade sector!"

"Tencent will be the least affected. If their market value drops by a third, Alibaba's might drop by half, or even 70%!"

"Still gloating here? A bunch of idiots!"

Upon hearing this, everyone fell silent, their expressions turning even more grim.

Yes, once the global financial crisis broke out, every single giant suffered heavy losses.

Even major BTA companies couldn't withstand it.

Alibaba, which focuses on foreign trade, was the most affected!
Even more tragic than Baidu and Tencent.

However, misfortunes never come singly.

Lu Qinghuai sighed: "Of the BAT companies, Alibaba suffered the most during the global financial crisis. And within Alibaba, our investment department suffered the most!"

“When the economy was good, Alibaba’s market value was 1700 billion RMB. With such a high market value, the group had plenty of money, and our investment department could invest and acquire companies everywhere.”

"With the global financial crisis now in full swing, Alibaba is the first to be affected, and its market value may fall to 700 billion, or even 500 billion!"

"The entire group is doomed. It has to undergo a comprehensive strategic contraction, cut costs and increase revenue. Where will it find the money to invest?"

"For a considerable period of time to come, our investment department will be starving, and we might even have to lay off a large number of employees!"

"This..." The crowd turned pale, but they believed it without a doubt.

When the economy is good, there is money, and Alibaba's investment department invests heavily, spending money everywhere.

But when the financial crisis broke out, Alibaba's market value plummeted by more than half, and the entire group was struggling. Where would they get the money to invest?
If there's no money left to invest, then the investment department won't need to support so many people anymore; layoffs are a certainty.

The Alibaba investment team, who had been gloating just moments before, were now unable to laugh.

Instead, they became extremely fearful and apprehensive.

Everyone's worried about graduating early!
Watching Ali and his entourage leave in a panic, Wang Junshan upstairs remained calm:

"Alibaba's good days are over!"

This financial crisis has hit all businesses hard.

Internet companies and technology companies, especially Apple, Google, Microsoft, and BAT (Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent), have suffered heavy losses.

However, the extent of the loss varies depending on the type of business!
Companies like Tencent, which focus on social networking and gaming, were the least affected and suffered the least losses.

Its market value will drop from the current 100 billion RMB to 70 billion RMB, a decrease of 30%.

Baidu, which focuses on search and advertising, was generally less affected, but its market value dropped from hundreds of billions of RMB to 50 billion RMB, a 50% decrease.

Alibaba, which focuses on foreign trade, was the most affected and suffered the most severe losses. Its market value plummeted from 1700 billion RMB to 500 billion RMB, a loss of 72%!

It can be described as extremely miserable.

Unfortunately, the financial crisis has had the greatest impact on the foreign trade sector.

Alibaba's main business is B2B foreign trade!

For this reason, Alibaba will be very cautious in the coming year.

Outward investment has contracted across the board.

For the next six months, not a single investment was made.

It wasn't until the second quarter of next year, when the domestic economy bottomed out and recovered, that Alibaba spent 5.4 million yuan to acquire Wanwang, a leading cloud computing company!
However, this acquisition became Alibaba's most successful acquisition.

This is far more successful than Alibaba's acquisitions of companies like AutoNavi, Ele.me, Youku Tudou, NetEase Cloud Music, Xiami Music, and Tiantian Music!
It is hailed as one of the most successful strategic acquisitions in the history of China's internet industry!

There's no way around it; Wanwang is not only the largest domain name registration and website hosting service provider in China!

We also have over 20 small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) clients!

Furthermore, it possesses the most advanced IDC (Internet Data Center) technology, operation and maintenance team, and operational experience in China!

It can be said to be the cornerstone of Alibaba Cloud Computing!

Alibaba acquired Wanwang for only 5.4 million yuan, and its subsequent valuation is at least 50 billion yuan!
Most importantly, it has strategic value!
By acquiring Wanwang, Alibaba not only gained access to the leader in the IDC industry, but also Wanwang's 20 small and medium-sized enterprise customers!

Furthermore, they acquired a very mature team and a complete technical system!
This saved Alibaba Cloud computing at least three years of infrastructure construction time.

This is what led to the creation of Alibaba Cloud, a cloud computing platform valued at hundreds of billions of dollars!
In other words, without the acquisition of Wanwang, Alibaba Cloud Computing would have taken three more years to grow.

Three years is enough time to change a lot of things.

Thinking of this, Wang Junshan laughed so hard he slapped the table!
Wanwang, Alibaba needs it!
Future technologies will need it too!

Currently, the servers used by WeChat, Vipshop, and YouTuan.com are all leased, and the annual server costs are a huge sum.

Security is also outsourced, which is a huge expense.

Instead of doing that, why not take advantage of the financial crisis and acquire Wanwang at a low price!
Once Wanwang is available, future technology servers and security systems can directly use Wanwang.

Wanwang can make money, and Future Technology can save money.

Wanwang can also directly provide financial support to Vipshop and Youtuan Group Buying!

We will selectively import Wanwang's 20 small and medium-sized enterprise customers to Vipshop and YouTuan Group Buying, making them brand merchants on Vipshop or suppliers on YouTuan Group Buying!

Quickly build up the number of merchants, SKUs, and supply chain on Vipshop and YouTuan.com!

Isn't this much more reliable than Taobao and Paipai, which have a bunch of merchants selling counterfeit goods?

At the very least, Wanwang's clients are all enterprises, even small businesses, which are at least factory outlets! In fact, Wanwang's 20 small and medium-sized enterprises played a significant role in Alibaba's subsequent rapid development.

But now, Wang Junshan is going to steal the deal!
These 20 companies will provide Vipshop with a lifeline!

Not only can it be used for B2C business, but it can also be used to develop B2B business.

Further reduce dependence on Alibaba!
In the future, WeChat official accounts can be launched, allowing these companies to open official accounts, brand zones, and brand malls.

When a user places an order, they will be redirected directly to Vipshop or Youtuan.com to make the purchase.

It not only generates revenue for businesses and future technologies, but also greatly enhances WeChat's professionalism and commercial value!
This is something even QQ can hardly offer!

Similarly, once Wanwang is acquired, the payments of these 20 enterprises can also be switched to WeChat Pay, thus achieving a closed-loop payment system!

It has also stripped away the foundation of Alibaba Cloud Computing, setting back its development by at least three, or even five, years.

With Wanwang, Future Technology can seize the initiative in advance and make early arrangements for future cloud computing, thus having the capital to compete with Alibaba Cloud and Tencent Cloud!
Make up for the shortcomings in IDC (Internet Data Center)!

Give e-commerce companies a boost!

Empowering WeChat!

Payment closed loop!

Hijack Alibaba!

Seize the opportunity in cloud computing!
……

The benefits of acquiring Wanwang are numerous!

There are simply too many to count!
Take it, must take it!
Not just Wanwang, but also the original content teams; we must acquire them all.

Wang Junshan knew very well that many of Alibaba Cloud's core talents were from Wanwang!
By acquiring Wanwang, you will gain access to and a foothold in the cloud computing market for the next decade!
It is a turning point for the future technology industry, transforming from small businesses to giants!

However, this cannot be rushed.

Nobody is optimistic about cloud computing right now, and even Alibaba Cloud will be heavily criticized in the next few years.

It was Jack Ma's unwavering faith in Academician Wang Jian that led to the creation of Alibaba Cloud Apsara.

But right now, nobody's optimistic.

Alibaba's acquisition of Wanwang next year was initially just to fill gaps in its foundation.

When the financial crisis hits its worst at the end of the year, Wanwang will be unable to make ends meet, and major shareholders such as IDG will want to withdraw their investment. It would be perfect for Wang Junshan to buy at the bottom!
In its previous life, Alibaba spent 5.4 million yuan to acquire Wanwang in April of the following year, when the financial crisis was about to pass. It was an installment payment plus a performance-based agreement.

If Wang Junshan had bought at the bottom of the market at the end of this year, when the financial crisis was at its worst, 4 million yuan might have been enough!

With installment payments and a performance-based agreement, there's no pressure; the initial payment of 1.2 million is enough!
drizzle.

Seeing Wang Junshan's smile, Shen Huaijin suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.
"Boss, the financial crisis has broken out, and my dad is so worried he can't eat. How come you're still smiling so happily!"

When I saw the fourth largest investment bank in the United States go bankrupt.

Anyone with a bit of insight knows that this time the global financial crisis has truly erupted.

Everyone was filled with trepidation, especially those who owned companies.

From BAT giants to small business owners, no one is happy.

But Wang Junshan is an exception!

Instead of sadness or worry, his eyes shone with excitement!

The greater the crisis, the more opportunities there are!
Buying up Wanwang at rock-bottom prices is just one aspect!

Buying Riot Games, the developer of League of Legends, at rock-bottom prices was a stroke of genius!
Currently, Riot Games is still a startup. Its first game, League of Legends, is still under development and will not be launched overseas until next year. The company's current valuation is very low.

When a financial crisis breaks out, even major companies will find it difficult to raise funds.

Moreover, League of Legends is still in closed beta, and nobody knows if it has a future.

In its previous life, Tencent took advantage of the financial crisis to invest $800 million in its flagship company, acquiring a 22.34% stake!
I'm so busy making money I'm numb!
$8 million is only about 50 million RMB.

Wang Junshan can also produce it.

If the other party is willing to sell more shares, Wang Junshan is willing to sell everything he owns and even acquire the entire company.

Once League of Legends launches next year, it'll be easy to make a fortune.

How much profit did Riot Games bring to Tencent in its previous life?
Hundreds of billions of RMB!

This is absolutely the investment with the highest return on investment, even better than Alibaba's acquisition of Wanwang!

Even Buffett admits he's not as good as them!

All I can say is that during the financial crisis, there were just too many opportunities to buy quality assets at rock-bottom prices!
However, it also requires a lot of funds.

If we can successfully secure the 20 billion from Tencent, that would be great.

However, it seems that it will be difficult at present.

Even though Tencent was the least affected by the financial crisis, its investment in Vipshop will likely have to be put on hold.

No giant dares to take such a risk as to invest $20 billion in venture capital during the global financial crisis!
Instead, the priority should be to rapidly contract, reduce spending, weather the financial crisis, and survive!
This is the consensus of everyone.

Unless one is certain of winning, they will not take the opportunity to buy at the bottom.

For example, investing tens of millions of RMB to buy up a company like Riot Games at rock-bottom prices carries little risk and requires minimal capital investment, so Tencent naturally wouldn't hesitate.

But investing 2 billion in Vipshop would be difficult.

Sure enough, Yao Mingchen received a call from Chairman Ma as soon as he got off the plane:
"Mingchen, immediately halt the investment in Vipshop!"

"Lehman Brothers went bankrupt!"

"A global financial crisis has broken out!"

Yao Mingchen was about to curse after hearing the first sentence, but he fell silent after hearing the second sentence.

The financial crisis has broken out!
Why bother throwing a bird then?
"Okay, Chairman, I understand."

It's not just a project worth a hundred or two hundred million, it's a super project worth 20 billion!
If there's no financial crisis, it's fine, but if there is, then you absolutely cannot invest.

Moreover, Vipshop was certainly affected by the financial crisis, with its revenue declining and its valuation being halved.

Even if they were to invest, the valuation wouldn't be 100 billion.

Wait and see, and then make your move when Vipshop is most short of cash is actually the best time!

After smoking two cigarettes on the spot, Yao Mingchen dialed Wang Junshan's number:
"Chairman Wang, I'm sorry, the financial crisis has broken out, and there's nothing I can do about it."

"However, I am still very optimistic about Vipshop. If a suitable price is offered, I can continue to lobby the board of directors and push for further investment in Vipshop!"

Wang Junshan smiled faintly: "It's alright, President Yao. Our Future Technology's revenue is pretty good, we're not short of money. We'll talk about it later."

Yao Mingchen frowned. The financial crisis had already broken out, and President Wang still wasn't planning to sell Vipshop at a bargain price!

Great!

you can!

"Okay, I'll head back now and we'll talk about it later. We'll consider investing in Vipshop again after the financial crisis is over."

"Okay." Wang Junshan hung up the phone calmly.

Once the financial crisis is over, that will be next year.

Vipshop is currently valued at 10 billion yuan, but Tencent is not investing in it.

If we invest again next year, it won't just be a matter of 10 billion!
But it doesn't matter, let's make a big move first, intercept Tencent, and invest in their flagship company ahead of time!

We'll also secure the domestic distribution rights for League of Legends!
(End of this chapter)