At seven o'clock in the evening, Zheng Yaoyang arrived at the Peninsula Hotel as scheduled. His uncle had to give him face, otherwise he would not be able to deal with the board of directors.
Moreover, when the two armies are fighting, momentum is very important. You can eat without losing a piece of meat. Zheng Yaoyang also wants to know what kind of dog-skin plaster is sold in Huifeng Gourd.
Under the guidance of the hotel staff, Zheng Yaoyang led his assistant and bodyguard to the large private room in 11-1.
There were three people in the box. In addition to Su Haiwen and Stephen, there was also Chen Zhiyuan from the Hong Kong Financial Management Office.
Zheng Yaoyang raised his eyebrows, and even the Financial Management Office intervened. It was considered that the referee had gone too far.
Before Zheng Yaoyang could speak, Su Haiwen introduced with a smile: "Yaoyang, this is Chief Chen Zhiyuan. He is usually a busy man with many things to do."
He said this just to show his attitude that he was unaware of Chen Zhiyuan's arrival.
If he knew that Stephen also invited Chen Zhiyuan, he would never help as a lobbyist.
Because Chen Zhiyuan intervened on behalf of the government, the situation was very unfavorable to Zheng Yaoyang.
Chen Zhiyuan is also a veteran. When he heard this, he knew that Su Haiwen was trying to distance himself from the relationship. He laughed and said, "Hahaha, Mr. Su is blaming me for coming uninvited."
He looked at Zheng Yaoyang: "Mr. Zheng, this must be the first time we have met. They all say that Mr. Zheng has a domineering appearance. The meeting today is indeed extraordinary."
Zheng Yaoyang held up his hand and said with a smile: "Director Chen, you are so flattering. I have been very busy recently. I'm sorry that I couldn't visit in person."
He also looked at the third person in the box, a lean white man in his forties.
He should be Stephen Green, and the two of them are the protagonists of tonight's dinner.
Stephen smiled and spoke fluent Cantonese: "Mr. Zheng, I have been hearing about your deeds from Wells before, and I really hope to meet you. I finally got my wish tonight."
"Everyone, please take a seat and the waiter will serve the food."
Su Haiwen reconciled the situation with a smile and took the initiative to serve as the lubricant for both parties. After all, he has been in Hong Kong for more than 30 years and has long been proficient in Chinese dinner culture.
If it weren't for his white skin and blond hair, no one would think he was a native-born foreigner.
Zheng Yaoyang looked out the window, with most of Central in his sights. He pointed at the building on the other side: "Everyone, which one do you think is better to buy?"
"The Fuxing Head Office in East Tsim Sha Tsui is too old and dilapidated, so we decided to buy a building to use as our headquarters."
Zheng Yaoyang didn't like to chirp, so he simply went straight to the topic and tried to test their reactions.
Su Haiwen resolutely implemented the principle of neutrality and looked out the window intently, seemingly not hearing the subtext, and devoted himself to helping Zheng Yaoyang select possible buildings for sale.
Chen Zhiyuan glanced at Stephen, the two communicated with their eyes, and then smiled: "Yaoyang, is it okay for me to call you this?"
Zheng Yaoyang responded with a smile: "Brother Chen, you are too polite. It only sounds cordial when you call me by name."
"Since you already call me eldest brother, let me ask you to say a few words."
Chen Zhiyuan showed a satisfied smile. He had heard that Zheng Yaoyang was a monster, but he finally saw it tonight.
He was successful at a young age but still knew the ways of the world. With this kind of magnanimity, it is no wonder that he has achieved what he has today.
Chen Zhiyuan cleared his throat: "Xiangjiang is a free trade port city. We encourage competition among enterprises, because only through competition can progress be achieved."
"It's just that Fuxing Bank's deposit interest rate has been adjusted a little too high?"
If Fuxing was just a small bank, he would never ask a question even if the annual current interest rate was as high as 5%.
But Fuxing is not a small bank. Behind it stands Woodpecker’s US$18.9 billion, and Zheng Yaoyang is the guarantee.
This morning, just after the interest rate was announced, the number of people opening accounts at Fuxing Bank surged by thousands, and savings funds soared by HK$1.8 billion, which is enough to illustrate the situation.
Users' savings are the key to the operation of a bank and the basis for all investment projects. Without users' savings, the bank cannot survive.
Fuxing Bank's current interest rate is a full 0.3% higher than HSBC's, and its five-year dead interest rate is even higher by 0.92%. This is undoubtedly a devastating blow to HSBC's savings.
Zheng Yaoyang looked as usual, picked up a piece of shrimp and smiled lightly: "Director Chen, when did your Financial Management Office become so lenient?"
"Is it your personal opinion or HSBC's opinion to ask Fuxing Bank to lower its savings interest rate?"
"If it's the Financial Supervisory Office's opinion, it's no problem. As long as it's notified, we will make corrections immediately."
Zheng Yaoyang does not care about offending Chen Zhiyuan, because he can only represent individuals and cannot represent the Financial Supervisory Authority.
Even if he represents the Financial Management Bureau's thoughts, they have no way to directly step aside.
Because the Financial Management Office’s biggest role is to regulate Hong Kong’s financial industry, it generally provides advice rather than guidance.
As long as Zheng Yaoyang is willing, he can raise the annual interest rate to 10% and directly disrupt the entire market.
This is also due to Western freedom and human rights. Within this large framework, Xiangjiang's management department is directly unable to issue orders.
As long as Fuxing Bank does not violate the contract and default on users' savings funds and related interest, otherwise the Financial Supervisory Office will not be qualified to intervene.
Chen Zhiyuan's face turned blue and white. He had just praised Zheng Yaoyang for being sensible, but in the blink of an eye he was stabbed in the back.
Stephen, who had been silent next to him, finally said: "Mr. Zheng, maybe we can have a good talk. Malicious competition is not good for us."
If HSBC also raises the interest rate to 1.98%, then Fuxing may raise it to above 2.0%.
They have fallen into vicious competition, and in the end they will only lose money, and the users will only benefit.
This is also the specific reason why HSBC and Standard Chartered have maintained the same interest rates for a long time.
Because every time they raise or lower interest rates, they will notify the other party in advance, and the two banks will adjust the interest rates together, allowing users to make their own choices.
In fact, not only banks, but even a vegetable market on the east side of the street will tacitly agree on the same vegetable prices to exclude those who maliciously lower prices.
This is similar to a good person in the future who said that raising employees' salaries is malicious competition.
"We, Fuxing Bank, are a new company and we always have to offer some discounts to attract users' savings. I don't think there is anything wrong with this."
Zheng Yaoyang said with a smile: "If HSBC has any objections, it can definitely raise the interest rate to the same level as ours. This is the benefit that I, Zheng, seek for the people of Hong Kong."
Stephen said it nicely, and it seemed that he was doing it for the sake of the entire industry, but in fact he was doing it for HSBC.
Fuxing Bank's unauthorized increase in savings interest rates is a violation of the unspoken rules of the industry. This is indeed true.
But Stephen is changing the concept, because HSBC is the one who specifies the rules and will definitely support them firmly.
If everything goes according to plan, the boss will always be the boss, and newcomers will never get ahead.
Rules are meant to be broken,
But Zheng Yaoyang will not deny that if Fuxing Bank becomes the rule maker one day, they will also become a supporter of the rules like HSBC does today.
Stephen was silent for a long time: "Well, I think all the people in Hong Kong will be grateful to Mr. Zheng."
He looked at Chen Zhiyuan again: "Director Chen, thank you for the honor tonight. I'll leave first if I have something else to do."
With Zheng Yaoyang's current identity and status, it is destined that HSBC cannot start from the official side, and commercial matters will eventually have to be solved commercially.
They couldn't change Zheng Yaoyang's mind, so they could only adjust the interest rate along with Fuxing Bank. From now on, they would do it for real.