As expected, the negotiations did not go smoothly. In the joint negotiation team of Fortis Financial Group, the representatives of the government investors of Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg, which hold 49% of the shares, were relatively gentle, while the board of directors of Fortis Financial Group was much tougher.
A sharp look.
It's like a two-horse cart, both moving at the same pace, making it difficult to get to the destination comfortably.
The two sides talked for two days, and HSBC announced that it would temporarily adjourn the meeting for one day, waiting for Fortis Financial Group to resolve its internal conflicts.
Government representatives agreed to a proposal from HSBC, but Fortis Group strongly opposed it, and its own internal opinions did not agree. There was no way it could go down.
In the courtyard, a cool breeze blows.
Wang Yaocheng, Mo Yuxuan, and Si Wanru were sitting under the corridor, drinking afternoon tea leisurely. The maids brought exquisite fruit plates and refreshments for them to enjoy.
Looking carefully, Wang Yaocheng drank ice-cold sparkling champagne, Mo Yuxuan drank French red wine, and Si Wanru drank a cup of tea. They were similar in appearance but different in spirit. They were not the template of British afternoon tea at all.
For Chinese people's sense of smell and stomach, English black tea with sugar and milk is really intolerable.
Wang Yaocheng waved his hand, and the blond and blue-eyed maids bowed and bowed, then quietly retreated, leaving a quiet space for their master to chat.
"Haha, these European nobles are really difficult to talk to. They are indifferent and arrogant during the negotiations. They don't know the inside story and think we are begging them. It is really ridiculous. I have never seen it in more than 30 years of business.
to play such an arrogant and difficult role.”
Mo Yuxuan couldn't help but lament the two days of confrontation with his negotiating opponents, and looked like he was eye-opening.
Si Wanru quietly picked up the tea cup and took a sip. She suddenly pursed her lips and smiled and said, "President Mo has been really frustrated these days. Count Fritz Katzenberg is a very bad-tempered leader. At Fortis,
The financial group is right. He comes from an ancient aristocracy, and I heard he has great influence in both political and business circles in Belgium. He is also the biggest obstacle to this negotiation. It is very difficult for the negotiation to make progress."
After saying that, Si Wanru glanced at Wang Yaocheng, who was there, and saw that he was crossing his legs leisurely, without any intention of answering, so he had to ask directly: "Brother Cheng, the negotiation has reached a deadlock, what do you think?
What’s the best way to do it?”
"Ah...oh, you can figure this out for yourself." Wang Yaocheng was stunned for a moment and then responded casually.
Mo Yuxuan knew that his young boss was full of evil ideas and really needed to get some advice from him on this matter, so he used his eyes to instigate Si Wanru to ask again.
Don't hide it if you find any good ideas. It's all for the benefit of the consortium, right?
Si Wanru understood immediately and saw Wang Yaocheng pick up the wine glass and take a sip of champagne. He stretched out his hand and pulled down his sleeve, causing Wang Yaocheng to almost drink it down his neck. He said complainingly, "Oh! This... luckily I reacted."
Hurry, or the champagne will be spilled all over you."
"Huh, you just pretend and don't think of a solution for us."
"Is there anything we can do about this? Let's talk."
"Brother Cheng, don't try to hide it from me. Anyway, I know you must have a solution. Just tell us and let us listen."
Wang Yaocheng had no choice but to put the champagne glass on the table. He sat up and looked at Mo Yuxuan. Seeing a helpless smile on his old face, he took the initiative and said: "Boss, I am too old to use my brain, so it is up to you."
Take it upon yourself to figure it out."
"Brother Yuxuan is too modest. As long as we clarify the concerns and interests of all parties, this matter is not difficult at first. We can just use one move to surround Wei and save Zhao."
"Boss, please make it clear, we are all ears."
Wang Yaocheng saw that Mo Yuxuan and Si Wanru both looked serious about asking for advice, so he could only cough twice and said;
"Ahem, you don't want to use your brains, you blame me for everything. Solving this matter is not difficult at all, but it is not difficult at all.
First of all, government representatives and the board of directors of Fortis Financial Group are willing to come to us for help, which in itself represents a compromise, an attitude, a need, and a prerequisite for cooperation.
Count Fritz Katzenberg, chairman of Fortis Financial Group, comes from a traditional Belgian aristocratic family. He has a headstrong personality and a tough approach. He indeed has a very wide circle of friends in Europe.
Otherwise, it would be impossible to instigate the Royal Bank of Scotland and the Bank of Spain to jointly invest 70 billion euros to acquire ABN AMRO, the leader in the Nordic banking industry. There are many difficulties in this.
Any difficulty may cause this largest banking merger in European history to abort.
However, Count Fritz Katzenberg actually accomplished this feat.
This is a beautiful cross-border merger and acquisition case that can be included in the Harvard Business School tutorials. Unfortunately, the timing at the end of 2007 was too embarrassing, which put Fortis Group into an even more difficult situation.
I have to admire Fritz Katzenberg's lobbying ability and superb communicative skills here, which is far from being rigid and inflexible at the negotiation table in the past two days.
Why does the same person behave differently before and after?"
After raising this question, Mo Yuxuan and Si Wanru were both thoughtful and seemed to understand something?
Wang Yaocheng continued speaking as he thought of himself;
"The biggest reason why Count Fritz Katzenberg behaved differently before and after was because of his interests;
The governments of Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg have already rescued Fortis Financial Group. Although they paid 49% of their equity, the board of directors of Fortis would rather ask for more government assistance than commit themselves to HSBC. There is a huge difference.
.
As one of the government's rescue measures, obtaining 49% of Fortis Financial Group's priority is not the purpose, but a way of rescue, a high-sounding reason that stops the domestic people from talking.
After the company comes back to life, the government's stake will be withdrawn in an orderly manner and Fortis Financial Group will return to its true identity as a private financial institution.
In terms of emotions, reasons and interests, Fortis Financial Group is of course willing to cling to the government's support and is unwilling to accept the absorption of HSBC. This situation is common in the European financial community.
In turn, for the elected government side;
Public dissatisfaction is boiling, and voices of opposition are endless. If you want to get rid of this embarrassing situation of using fiscal funds to rescue private financial companies as soon as possible, it is natural to come to us.
In other words, it was due to the strong request from government representatives that Fortis Financial Group took the initiative to come to negotiate.
Once this is clarified, the following measures will be much easier to implement.”
After speaking, Wang Yaocheng smiled arrogantly and said;
"In one day at most, the latest news will come from Germany. The acquisition negotiations, personally chaired by Mr. Huo Jiaguang, are targeting the German Hypo Real
Estate Holding Company (Wave Real Estate Mortgage Holding Company) is a real estate mortgage loan company invested by many financial companies in Germany. Its assets are mainly in Germany, France, Belgium, Austria and other countries, mainly involving commercial real estate and residential apartments.
and shops, real estate and other real estate projects. After the acquisition, they will become Yangtze River Industrial Company's key projects in Europe, with an estimated investment of approximately 17.2 billion euros (including more than 10 billion euros in debt).
In addition, Royal Family Fund has initialed an agreement with Vodafone UK to invest in the industry, and plans to invest 46 billion euros to acquire 31.2% of Vodafone's equity and obtain 5 director seats in the 17-member board of directors.
I will fly to London to sign this important agreement in person the day after tomorrow.
The consortium's successive completion of major mergers and acquisitions in Europe will definitely greatly promote negotiations with Fortis Financial Group. You can focus on government representatives and influence the board of directors of Fortis Financial Group through them.
Presumably they will be more anxious than us and have many means to pressure Count Fritz Katzenberg to give up his unrealistic illusions.
Besides, the board of directors of Fortis Financial Group is not an iron plate. As long as we obtain 49% of the government's preferred shares and add some weight, the formal balance will completely tip in our favor."
Having said this, Wang Yaocheng looked at Mo Yuxuan with a smile and said;
"It is not difficult to obtain Fortis Financial Group. What is difficult is to obtain a large low-interest loan from the government to continue to improve the appearance and cash flow of the acquired company. If you can use other people's money to develop, why not use it?
We can use HSBC's equity in exchange for the government's 49% stake in Fortis Financial Group worth 11.2 billion euros, and the money saved can be used to acquire other equity interests, improve business operations, and get it back on track."
Mo Yuxuan nodded frequently after hearing this, and said with emotion; "With the good news about Iaguang in the periphery, I believe that the government representatives will definitely be unable to sit still, and we will take the opportunity to raise more low-interest financing requirements.
That’s twice the result. As long as we obtain the absolute controlling stake, Count Fritz Katzenberg’s smelly and hard bone doesn’t need to be negotiated. We can just kick it away. Thanks to Boss, HSBC knows what to do.
"
"You should contact Iemitsu more specifically about this matter. You should control the pace of negotiations and put maximum pressure on your opponent."
"Hahaha... After listening to Boss's thorough analysis, I now feel that Fortis Financial Group is not difficult to deal with, and I feel much more confident now."
Mo Yuxuan smiled very brightly, and his eyes were almost narrowed to a slit. Wang Yaocheng, who was striking while the iron was hot, gave him another bad idea and said;
"Since the government representatives are willing to ask us to take action, this 49% stake is already in our possession, and the price has been set, which is still 11.2 billion euros. There is no dispute about this.
The key is to dig out more benefits. How to save Fortis Financial Group is a big question. How many job opportunities will be cut? How many assets will be sold? What should ABN Amro do?
Since ABN AMRO is related to tens of thousands of job opportunities in the Netherlands, should the Dutch government do something to support corporate mergers and reorganizations?
Fortis Financial Group's branch in Belgium, asset revitalization, job opportunities for employees, and how to ensure the interests of customers?
Haha, the article here is quite big, so I need to brainstorm and write it carefully.
Don't just focus on the die-hard Count Fritz Katzenberg. You will never be able to change his mind. By working with other small and medium-sized shareholders, you can easily remove this roadblock.
The key is to find more benefits.”
After hearing this face-to-face instruction, Mo Yuxuan beamed and nodded. He couldn't wait to stand up and convene a meeting with his subordinates Zhuge Liang. Everyone brainstormed ways to squeeze more oil out of the stone.
Mo Yuxuan left in a hurry, as excited as ten years younger.
He does have reason to be excited. As the biggest reward in this financial crisis, HSBC will fully merge with Fortis Financial Group to strengthen the shortcomings of the insurance business.
HSBC will consolidate its position as the world's largest multinational bank and reach the world's top operating level. This professional honor is accomplished in one's own hands, and the sense of honor is unparalleled.