Chapter 1571: The Ambition of Private Equity

When something is dispensable to people, they will despise it and take pleasure in playing with it, even destroying it out of some perverse taste.

In other words, human nature has always been the most sinister existence.

Although Zhao Fusheng and Ma Huateng appreciated each other, that did not prevent them from being wary of one another.

The reason was simple: they were both businessmen.

The details of cooperation were naturally left to the staff below; when the two bosses sat together, they mostly talked about the big picture, the future, and some of their own ideas.

Of course, at present, the cooperation between Zhao Fusheng and Ma Huateng was still in its honeymoon phase, far from any hostility.

Only when their businesses came into conflict would they likely cross swords.

But by then, they probably wouldn't be at each other's throats; instead, they would choose peace and resolve issues through negotiation.

After chatting a while longer with Boss Ma, Zhao Fusheng took his leave, and Ma Huateng personally saw him out of the office.

Leaving the Tencent Technology building and getting into the car, Zhao Fusheng sat in the sedan, his expression darkening.

“Check it out. Someone is interested in Tencent’s shares!”

Zhao Fusheng quickly took out his phone and dialed Dong Chenxi’s number.

Dong Chenxi had just finished her business in the US and returned to China a few days ago. Hearing Zhao Fusheng’s words, she was stunned: “Are you kidding?”

Zhao Fusheng nodded: “Ma Huateng said it himself. There’s movement on the Hong Kong stock exchange. Check it out.”

He had no doubt that Ma Huateng would deceive him on this, as there was simply no need.

In Zhao Fusheng’s view, it was simple: as long as there was capital flow, the source could be traced, and then they could follow the clues to find out which company was interested in Tencent Technology.

“After we find out…”

Dong Chenxi hesitated and asked Zhao Fusheng.

Zhao Fusheng smiled: “After we find out, we’ll also buy up some shares.”

“Huh?”

Hearing Zhao Fusheng’s words, Dong Chenxi was dumbfounded. She never expected him to give such an answer.

“Come on, we’re not the international police. If someone wants to acquire Tencent Technology, can we stop the transaction?” Zhao Fusheng said helplessly to Dong Chenxi with a smile. “I just want you to be aware. Besides, others can buy, and so can we. Act according to the funds we have on hand; don’t force it.”

Future Investment currently didn’t have much cash flow, and Zhao Fusheng was well aware of that, which was why he told Dong Chenxi to act within their means.

“Okay, I understand.”

Dong Chenxi wanted to discuss the company’s cash issues with Zhao Fusheng, but after thinking it over, she said nothing.

Zhao Fusheng probably had no good solution for this problem either.

Putting down the phone, he rubbed his eyes with a headache and said, “Let’s go. Take me back to the hotel.”

Hu Donghai, who was driving, nodded and started the car.

…

…

Two days later, in the capital.

“I found out. It’s an investment company from South Africa.”

Dong Chenxi sat in Zhao Fusheng’s office and said to him, who had just returned.

Zhao Fusheng frowned: “A South African company?”

“Yes. We don’t know the forces behind it, but the funds come from South Africa,” Dong Chenxi explained to Zhao Fusheng.

This was the conclusion she had reached after careful investigation.

“Alright, forget about it. We’ll start buying up shares on the stock market too.”

After thinking for a moment, Zhao Fusheng said to Dong Chenxi: “As for funds, we can contact the Bangkok Bank and ask them to continue investing.”

“Okay.”

Dong Chenxi was taken aback, then nodded to show she understood.

The three hundred million US dollar loan from the Bangkok Bank had been repaid long ago, with Zhao Fusheng’s consent, after the sale of Facebook shares.

Given the Chen family’s boldness, if Future Investment proposed borrowing funds again this time, they likely wouldn’t refuse.

“Wait a little longer, no more than a year,” Zhao Fusheng said with a smile to Dong Chenxi. “Once Alibaba goes public, our cash flow will ease up.”

He had now come to understand that to grow his business, he had to give up some things.

Previously, Zhao Fusheng had always tried to be a major shareholder of Alibaba, but now he realized that Future Investment was still too small.

Wanting to become a major shareholder of Alibaba with Future Investment’s current scale was nothing but a pipe dream.

This was something Zhao Fusheng had to admit, even if he was reluctant.

Because the facts were right there.

“Are you planning to sell shares?”

Dong Chenxi frowned slightly and looked at Zhao Fusheng.

Zhao Fusheng nodded: “Yes. Whether it’s Alibaba or JD.com, we need to start reducing our shares to exchange for cash.”

“Isn’t that a bit too hasty?” Dong Chenxi hesitated and asked Zhao Fusheng.

Although she understood his intention, she felt that he was being overly cautious.

Or rather, his approach was essentially pushing money away.

“Unless we plan to do nothing in the future,”

Zhao Fusheng explained calmly. “Otherwise, this is an inevitable issue.”

Dong Chenxi fell silent.

She knew that what Zhao Fusheng said was indeed a problem facing Future Investment now.

Simply put, because they had never raised funds externally, all of Future Investment’s investments so far had been earned through Zhao Fusheng’s maneuvering.

This approach ensured that the company’s profits were not shared with outsiders and control was not lost.

But it also created a problem: Future Investment had insufficient cash flow.

Of course, for an ordinary investment company, a few billion US dollars would be enough, but unfortunately, because of Zhao Fusheng’s foresight, all of Future Investment’s projects had great development prospects.

That was the awkward part!

It was like having both fish and bear’s paw—both seemed delicious, but getting both wasn’t easy.

Dong Chenxi naturally understood this, but as the person handling these projects, she was still reluctant. After all, the shares Future Investment held in these companies would be worth a lot once they went public, and both she and Zhao Fusheng knew that well.

“What about SoftBank…”

Dong Chenxi thought for a moment and asked Zhao Fusheng.

Since Zhao Fusheng had decided to sell Future Investment’s shares, the best buyers would undoubtedly be SoftBank and Sequoia Capital.

Both were the optimal choices in terms of strength and influence.

“No rush.”

Zhao Fusheng smiled upon hearing Dong Chenxi’s words. “Someone is more anxious than we are.”

Dong Chenxi was startled, then also smiled.

Zhao Fusheng was right. There were indeed people more anxious, especially with Alibaba about to go public.

A hen about to lay golden eggs—there would be no shortage of people coveting it.

“There are plenty of good projects.”

Seeing that Dong Chenxi seemed a bit disappointed, Zhao Fusheng said, “People can’t be too greedy. You and I both know that Future Investment hasn’t had an easy journey. We’ve gotten this far without relying on others, and we won’t do so in the future. So necessary trade-offs are unavoidable.”

Dong Chenxi sighed: “I understand. Honestly, sometimes I even think about whether we should do private equity.”

Private equity, as the name suggests, refers to privately offered investment funds, which are raised from qualified investors through non-public offerings and invested in stocks, equity, bonds, futures, options, fund shares, and other investments as agreed in the investment contract, abbreviated as private equity funds.

When issuing securities, governments, financial institutions, industrial and commercial enterprises, etc., can choose different investors as the target, thus dividing securities issuance into public offering and private placement.

The analysis mainly starts from the establishment of three forms: corporate private equity funds, limited partnership private equity funds, and trust-type private equity funds, including establishment conditions, establishment subjects, capital contribution systems, and establishment procedures.

Regarding the minimum registered capital, according to the Company Law, if laws or administrative regulations have higher provisions, those shall prevail. According to the filing conditions stipulated in the Interim Measures for the Administration of Venture Capital Enterprises, the paid-in capital of a company shall not be less than 30 million RMB. According to this regulation, the paid-in capital of a venture capital enterprise must be at least 30 million RMB, but the registered capital is not clearly specified.

Currently, Future Investment is solely Zhao Fusheng’s investment company. Although the management led by Dong Chenxi holds some equity, the absolute majority shareholder is Zhao Fusheng himself.

To be fair, if Future Investment really transformed into a private equity firm, it could be one hundred percent certain that many people would be willing to invest.

At the very least, people like Xue Yuanfang and Han Bin would all be willing to join.

But at the same time, once it became a private equity firm, Future Investment’s nature would change, and Zhao Fusheng would face more problems.

Being able to fully invest in a project once it caught his eye, as he did now, would basically become impossible.

“As for private equity, don’t consider it for now.”

Zhao Fusheng thought for a moment and said with a smile: “Once Alibaba goes public, we can use Future Investment as the sponsor to set up a private equity fund.”

Huh?

Dong Chenxi raised her eyebrows, looking at Zhao Fusheng in surprise. Clearly, she hadn’t expected him to have such an idea.

Zhao Fusheng shrugged: “Now is not the time.”

This was true. Currently, domestic private equity was still in a developmental stage. From the early days of stock market manipulation and futures speculation to the current era where public fund managers dominated, private equity had yet to reach a rational and standardized level.

Therefore, Zhao Fusheng was in no hurry to enter this industry. He would wait until the time was ripe before officially stepping in.

By then, he looked forward to seeing whether he could reap greater returns.