He is Already a Tycoon at a Young Age! - Chapter 95



Only Noblemtl

#095

June 26, 1997, a luxury hotel suite in Shenzhen, China.

“Are you really going to invest in Lei Jun, whom you met yesterday?”

Han Jun-ho, CEO of Dongbang Investment Corporation, asked me.

“We will invest $1 million as the first investment, and then invest another $4 million after Xiaomi is established, as Lei Jun mentioned.”

“Sir, I am just a young Chinese man with nothing special about me.”

“CEO Han Jun-ho, I don’t look special to people who don’t know me.”

“So what did you like? I didn’t see anything special about the IT-related portfolio he submitted.”

“It’s a will. And it’s a reality check. And there are no Chinese people who know China well. But Lei Jun knows China well. He accurately judges China’s uniqueness and China’s market potential. So I gave him a business idea.”

“If the CEO himself is going to provide business ideas, why would we invest in the Chinese?”

“We are investing in Lei Jun because he is Chinese. That is the most important thing, and we are investing in China because of its unique characteristics.”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“As the Chinese economy grows, China will look to the United States as its competitor. Accordingly, it will be closed to American companies. The same will apply to Korean companies. However, if you look at the market potential created by China’s population, China is the largest market in Asia. I think China is not the world’s factory, but the world’s consumer market.”

“I agree with that.”

“That big market will be closed to foreign companies. So I asked Lei Jun to develop and produce a Chinese-made mobile phone.”

“A Chinese-made cell phone? Then, wouldn’t that mean we’re supporting a Chinese company that will eventually become an enemy of Samsung Electronics?”

“That’s right. But even if I don’t invest in Xiaomi, the electronics company that Lei Jun will establish, the Chinese people will still turn away from Korean mobile phones. As China’s national power grows, the Chinese people will develop abnormal patriotism, and the Chinese Communist Party leaders will encourage this.”

The Chinese are strangely fans of their country, or more precisely, fans of the Communist Party.

‘As I remember.’

They focus on patriotic consumption. But even those Chinese people are crazy about Apple and love Nike.

In a word, the snout shouts out for the use of domestic products.

The big picture is Apple’s iPhone and Nike’s Air Jordan. But Chinese consumers are turning away from products from Korean companies.

‘It’s not that great.’

Of course, that could change, since I’m determined to change the central axis of the smartphone industry.

“In any case, Chinese people will prefer domestic products, especially domestic products with similar performance. In fact, not all Chinese consumers are rich. There are many consumers who want to buy and show off a mobile phone with Internet access, but they cannot afford it. They are also consumers. I think it is important for entrepreneurs and investors to know exactly which groups they should target.”

“I understand what you mean. But Xiaomi seems to be doing something like that because of its mission.”

“Millet, it’s okay, Lei Jun’s Xiaomi will start out as a mere grain of rice. And at first, the Chinese will also say that it is a disgrace to the continent. Perhaps Xiaomi’s CEO Lei Jun will copy a phone made by Samsung Electronics. So Chinese consumers will feel embarrassed.”

“That’s right. Samjung Electronics is a company run by your father. It’s about raising enemies.”

“They say China is creating an independent market. Even if Xiaomi, which I invested in, did not exist, Chinese companies would always copy products from South Korean companies and sell luxury goods from the United States or Europe. And Xiaomi, which started as a disgrace to the continent, will begin to create through imitation and copying, and by then it will become the pride of the continent. Of course, I am one of the major shareholders of Lei Jun’s Xiaomi, so I will secure enormous profits. There are no eternal enemies or friends in investment.”

That’s why I’m going to meet George Soros.

‘Before that.’

I plan to find out who the capitalists are who invested in George Soros’ hedge fund and put pressure on him.

‘With rude language.’

In my view, George Soros is the setting sun. And I am the rising sun. So, for capitalists who invest in hedge funds, I may be better than George Soros.

‘Start as enemies, become allies.’

I’m going to steal everything from my ally George Soros. That’s my next investment. Anyway, according to the information I’ve found out so far, the person who invested the most money in George Soros is from the Saudi Arabian royal family. So it can be connected to the smart plant factory business that I’m developing.

“I understand what you mean. I will execute the investment as planned. But isn’t it too much of a favor to Lei Jun to invest 5 million dollars and only acquire a 34% stake?”

“I don’t think so. You’ll know when you see.”

Anyway, I brought forward the founding of Xiaomi, which started as a disgrace to China, by 13 years.

[The first investment is $1 million, the second investment is $4 million, and all factories built after Xiaomi is established will be built with my personal funds.]

[I don’t understand the conditions for establishing the factory.]

[As the Chinese economy becomes more active, real estate prices in first-tier cities like Beijing will skyrocket. That’s why I’m making this offer. And if Xiaomi grows into one of the top three electronics companies in China, I can get rent for factory land, so it’s good for me.]

You might wonder how much you can make from real estate speculation, but it’s quite a lot.

‘In the end.’

I need to sell my 29% stake in Xiaomi when its stock price reaches its peak. In short, my investment in China is a big hit.

‘For now, 1/3 of Xiaomi is mine.’

I made money.

Of course, Xiaomi is a tiny company compared to my target prey, Tencent or Alibaba.com.

* * *

July 1, 1997, Beijing Xiaomi’s founding preparatory office.

“The first investment of 1 million dollars has been deposited into Hong Kong Oriental Investment Corporation.”

The secretary of Xiaomi President Lei Jun said to Lei Jun.

“When was the meeting with Hwang Seong, the president of the mobile phone factory, scheduled?”

It didn’t matter to Lei Jun because he thought it was natural for money to come in from Dongbang Investment Corporation.

“President Hwang Seong has agreed to meet you tomorrow.”

“secretary.”

“Yes, sir.”

“I’m still in a position where I should be grateful for the permission of a successful businessman to meet me.”

“yes?”

“I’ll do the opposite in 10 years. Just wait and see.”

The Huang Sheng that Lei Jun spoke of was a person who was very interested in the mobile phone business and was currently the president of an electronics company that made and sold analog mobile phones.

“But sir.”

“why?”

“Will President Hwang Seong’s electronics company transfer the technology?”

“There’s no such thing as a free lunch. So I’ve been thinking about something.”

“Is that so?”

“Copy, take apart, copy, and put it in a new design shell.”

“yes?”

“Imitation is the mother of creation.”

That’s why Lei Jun’s Xiaomi was called the disgrace of the continent in its early days.

[If you want, I can provide you with a basic model of Samsung Electronics’ mobile phone.]

‘He’s the son of the president of Samsung Electronics, ha, hahaha!’

Lei Jun was even more surprised to learn whose son Ji Sung was, and even more surprised to hear that he would secretly provide the basic model of Samsung Electronics’ mobile phone.

[Why are you doing this?]

[Because China will create its own domestic market. And I have no intention of permanently owning the shares of Xiaomi, which was founded by President Lei Jun. If time passes and it is revealed that I, a Korean, am the largest shareholder of Dongbang Investment Corporation and the second largest shareholder of Xiaomi after President Lei Jun, and if Chinese consumers learn of this, there will be quite a few consumers who will reject Xiaomi even if it is a Chinese company.]

‘He’s young, but he’s a really cool-headed investor.’

Anyway, Lei Jun met Ji Sung and reached a turning point in his life.

* * *

George Soros’s office.

“Ji Sung, the largest shareholder of Pacific Investment Corporation, is scheduled to visit the United States on July 15th?”

“Yes, so we set up a meeting for July 18th.”

“Good job, and what about Goldman Sachs?”

“Goldman Sachs announced that it will withdraw all funds invested in South Korea by the end of July.”

“Damn, hahaha, the South Korean stock index is going to fall again.”

“I think that by then, the 550-point barrier that is currently being maintained will also be broken.”

“Will it really fall below 400 points?”

George Soros clearly invested in the derivatives related to the plunge in the South Korean stock index that Ji-sung had invested in, and he secretly hoped that it would fall below 400 points.

“It is quite possible that Goldman Sachs will completely withdraw, and other foreign funds will also withdraw.”

“Of course. If that happens, I’ll be the one who suffers.”

“Since that is a possibility, you need to find a way to recover.”

“I already found it, the kid who will make up for my losses is coming to America. Hahaha!”

George Soros laughed out loud.

“Okay, what else?”

“I think the Thai baht will crash significantly tomorrow.”

“It’s finally starting.”

George Soros muttered with a meaningful expression.

“But boss.”

“You said that if the Thai baht crashes, the person who will make the most money is Pacific Investment Corporation?”

“Yes, the expected revenue is said to be over 5 billion dollars. And if the Indonesian rupiah crashes, then the revenue will be over 3 billion dollars.”

“For a young Asian, he is very good at investing, and he makes very gambling investments.”

George Soros was convinced that Ji-seong would become a hedge fund boss who would surpass him in the future. However, Ji-seong’s goal in this life was not to become a hedge fund boss, but to become a giant capitalist who controls the world economy, so George Soros was just a passing figure.

* * *

July 2, 1997, Oriental Investment Corporation building in Hong Kong.

“As you expected, the Thai baht has plummeted.”

CEO Han Jun-ho spoke to me with a surprised expression.

“How much profit would you make if the Thai baht crashes as expected?”

“5.5 billion dollars.”

I am the one laughing in the hell of Thailand’s economic crisis and currency crash.

“With the Thai baht plummeting, the stock prices of Thai companies have also plummeted. Sir.”

“It looks like you have a business proposal.”

“Yes, the large-scale farm project that you have planned is also a key business of Pacific Investment Corporation, but I think that Pacific Investment Corporation should ultimately become an investment bank.”

“Yes, we need to develop like American investment banks.”

“Isn’t that actually almost impossible in Korea?”

“So?”

“How about starting a Pacific investment bank in another Southeast Asian country, starting with Thailand, where the financial system is collapsing?”

That’s right.

“Shall we start in Thailand?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Let’s go ahead with the big farm business. If we do that, the profits we can make from the Thai baht’s plunge will only be about $1 billion.”

That’s okay too.

‘Because the foreign exchange crisis in Southeast Asia has finally begun.’

Anyway, if I were to establish a private investment bank in Thailand, I would have to meet the King of Thailand first and bow down in a strange position before him.

‘Get down once.’

What if you could put a straw in Thailand’s financial economy?

You can fall down not once, but a hundred times. Because there is no such thing as free investment returns in this world.