Chapter 997
The Little Smart Plan Goes Public
Lu Yang was taking advantage of the fact that the Li family was completely unprepared and couldn't possibly take on such a large order in one go.
really,
He reported this matter to his superiors.
The authorities sent people to verify the matter, and they quickly discovered that Li Zekai's company was essentially a shell company.
Apart from a contract signed with Toyo Telecom.
Nothing!
Factory buildings, equipment, and skilled workers—all of these take time to develop.
The Li family's reputation is very important.
But that wasn't enough to make the telecom leaders give up this time.
Lu Yang then proposed a "either you or me" approach, meaning that if the telecommunications company decided to accept the Li family as the base station equipment supplier for Xiaolingtong (a type of mobile phone service), he would have no choice but to withdraw.
Don't think he wouldn't dare.
Xiaolingtong Group has mature experience, ready-made factory facilities and equipment, and a sufficient number of skilled technical workers. Even without China Telecom, they can still choose China Mobile or China Unicom. Although the process may be a bit tortuous, Lu Yang believes that as long as he offers enough concessions, he will eventually be able to persuade one of these two companies.
Fortunately,
The worst-case scenario did not materialize.
The biggest difference between China Telecom, China Mobile, and China Unicom is that China Telecom does not have a mobile license.
However, as a supplement to fixed-line phones, PHS (Personal Handyphone System) does not require a mobile license.
We have Little Smart!
Telecom can then escape its current predicament.
So when faced with Lu Yang's protest and the two-option condition, the telecom executives didn't think twice and immediately approved the cooperation plan with Lu Yang at a meeting that night. They also decided to give Lu Yang face again on this matter.
That's how this phone call came about.
Warning the Li family is one thing, but making Lu Yang realize their importance is another. So that when he makes such unreasonable demands for either option again, he should think twice before making such demands!
After all, they aren't always so easy to talk to.
"Mr. Lu, will I sign the contract then?"
"Ok!"
Do you have any further instructions?
"Next, expand production and increase output, the faster the better, understand?"
"This……"
"what happened?"
"No...nothing much. It's just that after signing this contract, according to the contract, in addition to the 30% prepayment, the remaining 70% balance needs to be fully paid up before the settlement is completed, ensuring that the urban coverage rate exceeds 85% within three years."
In other words, we still need to advance 70% of the funds. After deducting the production costs of the equipment and the subsequent costs of installation workers' wages, Lao Wu and I have calculated that we will probably need to advance at least one billion yuan. We may need to ask the bank for help with this money later. If we continue to expand production and increase output, in addition to buying land and building factories, we will also need to recruit a batch of new workers and spend time training them. All in all, the money will not be enough to cover our expenses. Moreover, banks are not bottomless pits and can't just lend us money whenever we want.
"Mr. Lu, what do you think about us taking this opportunity to launch our latest round of financing?"
So much nonsense!
So that's where he was waiting.
Lu Yang understood.
This isn't about money at all. Both Lu Hongliang and Wu Ying felt the time was ripe and were using this financing to test the waters. The next step, they'll probably be bringing up the company's IPO.
This is the dream of countless people!
Going public means becoming rich overnight.
So what should I do?
Lu Yang thought about it and realized that going public wasn't a bad idea. The future of Xiaolingtong was only in the next few years. It seemed to have a bright future, but in reality, due to its limitation of only being able to make local calls, it couldn't make long-distance calls, couldn't roam, and couldn't even access the internet. In the end, it could only be eliminated by the times.
This is something that was destined to happen in Lu Yang's previous life.
As a reborn individual, he naturally knew this all too well.
Fine, since you two have both decided to focus on taking the company public, I'll grant your wish. I happen to be short on cash right now; the chip and semiconductor industry is incredibly expensive, so I might as well take this opportunity to make a killing.
"Alright, since you two have already discussed it, I have no objections. Just remember to let me know when it starts..."
"sure!"
Seeing that Lu Yang agreed, Lu Hongliang on the other side nodded happily.
After hanging up the phone.
Turning to Wu Ying beside him, he said, "It's done. I told you, President Lu is a very easy person to talk to. Now it's up to you. I'm not as familiar as you with dealing with foreign capital..."
As he spoke, he suddenly swung his fist, his left hand striking his right palm with a "smack".
Wu Ying was also happy and said, "Don't worry, I've already made the arrangements. This time, we're going to go big. In China, whether it's A-shares or Hong Kong stocks, the financing channels aren't very good. Since we're a tech stock, we have to follow in the footsteps of our predecessors. If we're going to go public, we'll go to the US. We'll ring the Nasdaq bell together. Don't worry, I've got it covered."
New York is the world's financial center.
The Nasdaq Stock Exchange is the dream listing destination for the world's leading technology companies.
The investors here are the most enthusiastic and tolerant. They don't require the company to be profitable. As long as you have a dream, a story, and your story can be packaged perfectly, preferably with a touch of mysterious technology, then you can just wait to count your money.
This is a place where dreams are made.
It is the place in the world where the most people are made overnight millionaires, multi-millionaires, and even billionaires.
Wu Ying studied abroad and is very familiar with overseas capital operations. For example, in the previous Alibaba financing case, he was the one who led the contact with Masayoshi Son of SoftBank Group, an overseas capital firm. If it weren't for Lu Yang's interception, SoftBank Group would have already become a major shareholder of Alibaba.
Furthermore, his own UTStarcom, if it weren't for Lu Yang's appearance, would have ultimately benefited Masayoshi Son's SoftBank Group.
Moreover, according to the original historical timeline, UTStarcom, the predecessor of Xiaolingtong Group, had already successfully listed on the Nasdaq in the first half of this year.
As for why things changed in this lifetime?
On the contrary, because of Lu Yang's appearance, UTStarcom, which Lu Yang invested in, changed its name to Xiaolingtong Group and did not have as much money shortage as in the previous life.
That's why it's been delayed until now, and they still haven't completed the final round of financing before going public.
This time, Wu Ying was determined to bring in several influential foreign investors from Wall Street to support him. With the participation of these foreign investors, the listing of Xiaolingtong Group in the United States would naturally follow.
"but……"
“The global financial markets seem to be doing poorly lately. The Nasdaq has fallen from a high of 5,000 points in April and May to around 3,900 points now, a drop of more than 1,000 points in less than six months. Is it really appropriate for us to go public now and join in this frenzy?”
Lu Hongliang then expressed his concerns.
In fact, if the Nasdaq hadn't suddenly crashed a few months ago, the two of them should have started considering listing Xiaolingtong (a type of mobile phone service) long ago.
It wasn't until recently, when the authorities officially designated their PHS phones as a supplement to fixed-line phones and prepared to launch a large-scale pilot program in 300 cities across the country, that their hopes of going public were rekindled.
Such a significant positive development suggests that the company should experience rapid growth in the coming years.
This is the best time to go public and raise funds.
"Don't worry, there won't be any problems."
Wu Ying patted his old friend on the shoulder and said smugly, "I've already reached an agreement with Mr. Masayoshi Son of SoftBank and Sir Robert of Deutsche Bank. As long as we can roll out our PHS signal nationwide as planned, the future will belong to us. We won't need to ask them; they'll offer us money on their own, begging us to take it..."
He knows these foreign capitals all too well.
For companies whose future prospects are not promising and are unclear, you can beg them to invest even if you kneel down and beg them. But for companies like Xiaolingtong Group, whose future is destined to be bright and whose future has unlimited potential, you can extend an olive branch and have them kneel down and hand over their money. They are willing to do it, as long as you are willing to take the money from them.
Capital will stop at nothing to make money.
"Alright then, let's take a gamble."
"I'll leave these matters to you, Brother Wu."
"As for me, I'll just do what I can. I'm afraid I'll be very busy from now on. After all, there are 300 cities across the country. I don't trust anyone else to lead the teams. I have to lead the teams to each one and visit them all. It concerns the future, so we can't be careless."
"Mr. Lu is right. This concerns the future of the company. Whether we can promote Xiaolingtong to all cities in the country depends on whether we can successfully complete this order. I trust you to handle the technology, so please trust me. I will contact Mr. Shen of Wu Ying and Sir Robert of Deutsche Bank later. I may have to go abroad in a few days, so I will leave all the household chores to Mr. Lu."
Wu Ying doesn't handle production or sales, and he doesn't lead the technical department either; his abilities all come from his mouth.
After hearing this, Lu Hongliang had no objections and readily agreed.
This has been their division of labor all these years.
Moreover, the cooperation went quite smoothly.
"By the way, should we give President Lu interest this time too?"
Wu Ying asked.
Because they are considering going public, and they have already planned to ring the bell on Nasdaq.
Therefore, this time we can only choose a foreign capital entity as the lead investor.
Moreover, there can't be just one foreign investor. Besides the leading foreign capital, it must be a large foreign capital firm, and preferably with solid connections on Wall Street. In addition, it's best if two more foreign capital firms join as co-investors. In this way, the prerequisites for Xiaolingtong's listing in the US will be guaranteed.
At the very least, the process shouldn't be easily blocked.
Even if it gets stuck.
When it comes to the investment interests of foreign capital, Lu Hongliang and Wu Ying don't even need to ask; these foreign capital firms can handle it themselves.
"We definitely need to notify him. When we signed the contract, Mr. Lu included a priority clause..."
Lu Hongliang pondered for a moment, but then said, "Of course, considering the actual situation, in order for the company to successfully go public and raise funds, I think President Lu should be able to understand that the majority of this financing will still have to come from foreign capital, but... we can still manage to do it, Brother Wu, what do you think?"
Wu Ying's expression, however, was not very good.
He felt that Lu Hongliang was still not tough enough, and should be even tougher when facing that CEO Lu.
It’s different in the past.
UTStarcom was in dire straits when it finally gained Mr. Lu's favor and he was willing to invest money in them.
But they also made many sacrifices back then.
They didn't give much thought to the future at all.
As a result, things like priority investment rights, board seats, and voting rights were not restricted for Mr. Lu at all.
If this Mr. Lu were to harbor any ill intentions!
The goal is to give the other party a certain percentage of shares in the company, and if the shareholding ratio is further increased in the next round of financing.
The consequences are unimaginable.
Wu Ying had struggled for half his life and finally saw a glimmer of hope. If Xiaolingtong could successfully go public in the United States, then Wu Ying would immediately become rich and a genuine billionaire.
But it is precisely at times like these that we must remain calm and the outside world must be on high alert.
That's right, it's to prevent anyone from taking the credit.
“I think it’s best to limit it. President Lu’s share in the company is already quite high, higher than the combined share of both of us. Only the two of us together can keep him in check. Brother Hongliang, you can’t be unaware of that, can you?”
"This……"
Lu Hongliang was taken aback, and after a moment of hesitation, he said, "It shouldn't be that bad, right? President Lu doesn't seem like that kind of person!"
"You can know a person's face but not their heart."
Wu Ying quickly replied, "We have to be careful. I didn't say that President Lu is that kind of person. What if he is? What do you think? We can't entrust our lives to him, can we?"
Lu Hongliang fell silent.
Wu Ying saw that he had compromised.
Knowing that he couldn't push too hard, he said, "I think it's better to leave it at that. We can skip the co-investment, but we can give President Lu a guarantee that his shares won't be diluted. Of course, the premise is that he has to pay real money to buy it based on the valuation of this financing."
Hearing Wu Ying say that...
Lu Hongliang secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
That's fine then.
This way, he can at least have something to say when he sees Lu Yang again.
It doesn't count as betrayal.
President Lu thinks so highly of him, entrusting the company to him and even helping the company secure a huge order from the telecommunications company. Instead of being grateful, he even suspects the other party's sinister intentions.
This will make him feel very bad.
However, if Mr. Lu's shares can truly be guaranteed not to be diluted in the next round of financing, then he can finally give Mr. Lu a satisfactory explanation.
"Mr. Lu, that's the situation. I had to plead with Mr. Wu to agree. If you're not satisfied, I'll try to get it for you."
After breaking up with Wu Ying.
After thinking for a moment, Lu Hongliang personally called Lu Yang.
"Mr. Lu, you've worked hard and done a great job. As for trying to get more shares? No need. Mr. Wu is just thinking about the company's listing. It's okay if I have a few less shares. Of course, it would be better if I could keep my previous shareholding ratio. I have to thank you, Mr. Lu. I owe you a favor."
Lu Yang was somewhat surprised when he received the call, but he also smiled happily.
"No need, Mr. Lu, you're too kind. It's all I should do."
Lu Hongliang, sitting opposite him, was very modest. (End of Chapter)