Zhang Yida did not directly answer Singer's question, but spoke of his own thoughts.
"Currently, Ruixiang directly holds 100% of the shares in BBPay. I plan to let Ruixiang directly hold 50% of the shares, and the other 50% of the shares will be passed through, allowing Ruixiang's shareholders to directly hold shares in BBPay.
Then Ruixiang will transfer 10% of the equity to you, and the other 10% to existing shareholders or new investors."
"10% shares."
Singh muttered that he probably knew Paytm's shareholding structure. Founder and CEO Sharma holds about 15% of the shares, and Ali and SoftBank hold about 60% of the shares.
For him, as long as he can control the company, 10% of the shares is enough.
It's just that he can't come up with the acquisition money, although BBPay has never raised external financing.
However, compared to the US$9 billion valuation of competitor Paytm when it received Buffett's investment at the end of August last year, BBPay is valued at at least US$6 billion to US$7 billion.
Acquiring 10% of the shares requires US$600 million to US$700 million!
Thinking of this, he understood what debt Zhang Yida was talking about.
I want to buy the 10% shares with my own loan.
Thinking of this, Singer suddenly regretted that he should not have coveted the US$100 million and sold the company he founded a few years ago.
Seeing that Singh remained silent, Zhang Yida said: "If you can't come up with the acquisition money, I will discuss with the shareholders to help you acquire these 10% shares in the form of long-term low-interest loans.
When BBPay goes public in the future, or when its valuation increases, you can then transfer part of your equity to replace the loan."
Singer was hesitant for a moment. The debt of 6 to 7 billion US dollars was not just for fun.
If the company collapses, this debt will not disappear.
Or the company's development may decline, its valuation may drop, and it may become heavily indebted.
If the company's valuation remains unchanged, there will still be loan interest to pay.
Zhang Yida narrowed his eyes slightly and stopped looking at Singer.
This was his carefully chosen plan. While granting Singer 10% of the equity, he also put shackles on him.
There is motivation when there is pressure, and he also wants to see if Singer can be as brave and invincible as his "lion" name.
"What's the interest rate? How long is the loan term?"
Singer thought for a while and asked clearly about the conditions before making further decisions.
"The Bank of India's base interest rate is 6.5%, and the maximum loan period is five years. You can sign a supplementary agreement, and the loan can be renewed when it expires."
Singer shook his head, "The interest rate is too high. I think an interest-free loan is more suitable."
Zhang Yida shook his head, "This is not my decision, it is the decision of the company's board of directors. India's economy is developing rapidly and inflation is also relatively severe.
Interest-free loans are no longer possible, which will undoubtedly harm the interests of other shareholders."
Singer is also a highly educated person and is not a fool. He knows that a group of shareholders in Ruixiang need to push themselves out to be this "puppet".
But when you are a puppet, you can’t give away any benefits!
He continued to bargain with Zhang Yida, listing his difficulties and risks.
"Singer, there is risk in everything you do. Compared to an annual interest rate of 6.5%, if the company's valuation increases every year by more than that, you will earn it.
Unless you have no confidence in BBPay's operations, then we will have to consider changing partners."
Upon hearing this, Singer's mouth that was chattering immediately shut.
If you recruit professional managers under these conditions, others will break your head and fight for this right.
If he doesn't do it, there are people who do it.
But he also has some advantages. He founded the company BBPay himself, and he has been in charge of BBPay for more than three years.
It can be said that no one knows this company and India’s mobile payment market better than him.
Thinking of this, Singer told Zhang Yida about his irreplaceable role.
"Mr. Zhang, if you were any other professional manager, you would never be able to care for your company as much as I do my own children.
BBPay is currently developing smoothly, with various business indicators tracking Paytm.
Changing people hastily will only add unpredictable risks to the development of BBPay.
I am definitely the most suitable candidate, but your conditions do make me a little worried."
Zhang Yida admitted that what Singer said made sense, but he could not do such a thing without interest.
Calculated based on a principal of US$700 million, the interest in one year is US$45.5 million, which is more than US$200 million in five years.
This part of the equity is shared equally by all shareholders. Zhang Yida holds nearly 50% of Ruixiang's shares. If interest is exempted, it means that he personally will receive more than US$100 million in interest.
With so much money, he would not be easily persuaded by Singer.
Seeing that Zhang Yida was unmoved, Singh felt a little anxious.
"In this case, Mr. Zhang, I can agree to 6.5% loan interest, but I want 20% of the shares."
Singh was heart-broken and decided to seek wealth and honor once in danger.
As Zhang Yida said, as long as the annual valuation increases by more than 6.5%, he will earn the excess.
In five years, if the operation is good, it will be enough for BBPay's valuation to increase 3-5 times.
When the time comes, he will directly use the shares to repay the loan, so that he can also keep a large amount of equity in hand.
Zhang Yida hesitated a little, and gave Singer 20% of the shares, which could further mobilize the other party's enthusiasm for work, but the 10% share that was transferred was gone.
Ruixiang plans to use this part of the equity to recoup its initial investment in BBPay.
Including the US$100 million for the acquisition, Rui Qianqiang invested more than US$1 billion in BBPay.
BBPay is like a bottomless pit, burning hundreds of millions of dollars every year.
India's per capita GDP is only one-fifth of China's, and there are too many poor people. If you want to copy Yu'e Bao, Huabei, and borrow money to make money on a large scale, it is simply impossible.
The same goes for Paytm, which has not made a profit until now.
Just like the Chinese Internet in 2000, it may take another three to five years to see a profit.
But Zhang Yida feels that he has spent more than 1 billion US dollars in real money, not to mention that it was a wholly-owned holding in the past.
Now if we want to change the shareholding structure, we must recover part of the investment.
Investments are all risky. Only by reducing some of the risks can you survive in the long run.
And all 20% of the shares were lent to Singer in the form of a loan. If the company collapsed, he would not be able to repay it even if he sold it!
They also investigated Singh, who belongs to the Kshatriya caste and his family is considered to be of the upper class.
But counting the tens of millions of dollars Singer received from selling the company a few years ago, he and his family cannot afford more than a billion dollars in debt.
If his father was the boss of Reliance Group, Zhang Yida might lend money.
Even the guy who shoots anti-aircraft guns in China knows to ask what the student’s family does before lending money. This is called analyzing the repayment ability, and it falls under the category of basic risk control.
Obviously, Singer is a higher-risk person in Zhang Yida.
Zhang Yida thought for a while and was not in a hurry to express his position. He was thinking about tricking Boss Sun Zhengyi and asking him to complete the loan?
Anyway, Boss Sun still holds shares in Paytm, so he probably doesn’t want to see India’s No. 1 and No. 2 e-wallets fighting, right?