Chapter 155: Financing Apple Inc.
After the funds arrived, Lin Haoran immediately converted $100 million into Hong Kong dollars and transferred it to the HSBC account dedicated to stock operations. With more than HK$500 million at his disposal, Huanyu Investment Company could now aggressively acquire shares of Hongkong Electric Holdings.
Afterward, he called Su Zhixue: "Zhixue, the company's funds are now sufficient. You can speed up the acquisition, but try not to drive the stock price up too much!"
At this point, although Lin Haoran had deep pockets, he wasn't about to let acquisition costs soar unnecessarily.
"Understood, Boss. I know what to do. By the way, Boss, how much equity should we aim for?" Su Zhixue asked.
"Anything up to 49.9% is fine. Just don't exceed 50%," Lin Haoran answered directly.
Owning 49.9% of the shares would effectively secure his control over Hongkong Electric Holdings without triggering additional regulations or counterattacks.
At the beginning of the month, the bank account dedicated to acquiring shares had run dry.
Nevertheless, Lin Haoran had managed to accumulate about 24.5% of Hongkong Electric Holdings' shares by then.
Thus, the acquisition operation had temporarily paused.
Now that funding was no longer an issue, it was time to resume.
From the start of his plan until now, Lin Haoran had spent about HK$430 million acquiring 24.5% of Hongkong Electric Holdings.
Initially, the stock price was only HK$2.4 per share. After seven months, it had climbed to HK$3.2 per share.
The rapid rise was unavoidable — most Hong Kong stocks were rallying during this period, not just Hongkong Electric Holdings.
Even without Huanyu Investment buying aggressively, the stock would have risen anyway.
Still, even with the appreciation, Hongkong Electric Holdings remained very undervalued relative to its true worth.
Its market value had soared to HK$2 billion, but it was still far below what Lin Haoran knew it could be worth.
Now, with no more funding constraints, Lin Haoran was determined to finish the acquisition before other financial giants caught on.
24.5% ownership was not enough for him to rest easy yet.
After giving instructions to Su Zhixue, Lin Haoran felt reassured.
With the funds in place, he could return to Hong Kong at any time.
However, before leaving the U.S., he had another important matter to attend to.
He needed to make a trip to Silicon Valley.
During his frequent visits to Citibank's headquarters, he had learned a valuable piece of information:
Computer manufacturer Apple Inc. was seeking financing.
Apple's Apple III series was nearing completion.
However, the research and development had consumed a tremendous amount of cash, and the company was now in urgent need of funding.
Apple was offering a portion of its shares to raise capital for the completion of the Apple III project and its market launch.
They were hoping to secure investment from major financial institutions — Citibank among them.
It was John Reed who disclosed this information to him, mainly because Citibank itself wasn't very interested in investing.
However, what Citibank wasn't interested in, Lin Haoran found extremely attractive.
He knew just how incredible Apple's future would be.
Now, he could invest a small amount and enjoy astronomical returns in the future.
From his previous life's knowledge, Lin Haoran remembered that Apple would go public in December of this very year.
Clearly, the Apple III was designed to prepare the company for its IPO, highlighting the product's critical importance.
Lin Haoran also knew that, in reality, the Apple III would be a commercial failure.
It would lack basic features like a built-in clock/calendar and internal fans — oversights that ultimately doomed the product, necessitating the development of the Apple III Plus.
But none of that concerned Lin Haoran.
He had no intention of meddling with Apple's product designs.
Trying to alter the company's course could lead to unpredictable consequences.
It was safer to simply invest and hold onto Apple's stock long-term.
As long as he maintained his shares, in twenty years Apple's market value would break through $100 billion, and in thirty to forty years, it would surpass $2 trillion.
Such a high-quality company, currently private and actively seeking funding, presented an opportunity Lin Haoran could not afford to miss.
Upon learning about this, and seeing that Citibank wasn't pursuing the deal seriously, Lin Haoran immediately asked Citibank to help him get in touch with Apple.
For Citibank, it was an easy favor — and Lin Haoran was now an important client.
Naturally, John Reed readily agreed.
With no urgent business left in New York, Lin Haoran decided to make his move.
On January 23, after personally saying farewell to Citibank Chairman Walter Wriston and Senior Vice President John Reed, Lin Haoran left New York.
He boarded a flight to San Francisco, bringing Li Weidong and Li Weiguo along.
Apple's headquarters was located in Cupertino, south of Silicon Valley, not far from San Francisco International Airport.
Seven hours later, the plane landed safely in San Francisco.
By the time they disembarked, it was already evening.
Lin Haoran wasn't in a rush to visit Apple immediately.
Citibank had already set up a meeting for him at 10:00 AM on January 24, so he had plenty of time.
After leaving the airport, he and his two bodyguards took a taxi to a luxury hotel near San Francisco's Chinatown.
After settling their luggage, they headed into Chinatown for dinner at an authentic Sichuan restaurant.
Having spent over twenty days in New York, mostly eating Western food, Lin Haoran was thoroughly sick of it.
For him, Chinese food was infinitely better — richer, more flavorful, more satisfying.
Western food, by comparison, was far too plain.
San Francisco's Chinatown was the largest on the U.S. West Coast, comparable to New York's.
Centered around the intersection of Grant Avenue and California Street, its boundaries stretched across Bush Street, Powell Street, Broadway, and Kearny Street.
More than 100,000 Chinese expatriates lived here, creating a vibrant community full of traditional Chinese culture.
Walking through its streets, Lin Haoran felt as though he had stepped into a miniature China.
He wandered through Chinatown for over an hour before returning to the hotel to rest.
The next morning at 8:00 AM, Lin Haoran left the hotel.
He hailed a taxi to head south — to Apple's headquarters in Cupertino.
In the morning, San Francisco traffic was congested, likely due to rush hour, and it took them a full hour and a half to reach Apple's headquarters.
The address was 20863 Stevens Creek Boulevard, Building 3, Room C, Cupertino, California — the heart of Apple's operations.
The office building wasn't particularly large, but compared to when Apple had just started, it was clear they now had many employees.
Throughout the building, people were bustling about.
Apple's success today was owed to the massive success of the Apple II, which was also the cornerstone of their confidence for going public.
Currently, the Apple III — under development — represented their hope to raise their market value even higher.
Thus, the Apple III was of critical importance to Apple's future.
Otherwise, they wouldn't be seeking additional financing just to perfect its development.
After stating his purpose, Lin Haoran was quickly led to an office.
There, he met the now-legendary figure, Steve Jobs.
Of course, the Steve Jobs standing before him was still the young version — quite different from the iconic image Lin Haoran had in mind.
When Jobs saw Lin Haoran, he was momentarily surprised and couldn't help saying, "I didn't expect the investor Citibank recommended to be so young!"
"Mr. Jobs, you're young yourself, aren't you? Allow me to introduce myself: my name is Lin Haoran, from Hong Kong, and a partner of Citibank," Lin Haoran replied with a smile.
Indeed, Steve Jobs was only 25 years old at this time.
Lin Haoran was also 25, although he would turn 26 later that year.
In fact, they were about the same age.
Hearing this, Jobs smiled too.
Both being young made it easier to build rapport.
Jobs had suffered plenty from being young — many people distrusted him and his team precisely because of their youth.
"Mr. Lin, to help you better understand our company, let me first give you a tour of our departments and explain the current state of the company," Jobs said after shaking Lin Haoran's hand.
"Thank you, Mr. Jobs," Lin Haoran nodded.
He was indeed curious to see Apple during this early era.
Over the next half hour, Jobs personally took Lin Haoran on a tour of the various departments.
As they walked, Jobs explained Apple's achievements and their future plans.
The building wasn't large, so most of the time they paused somewhere as Jobs explained and Lin Haoran listened attentively.
"Mr. Lin, shall we go to the meeting room to talk?" Jobs suggested.
"Of course," Lin Haoran nodded.
Jobs then led Lin Haoran into a conference room of just over twenty square meters.
In addition to Steve Jobs, four others were already waiting:
Steve Gary WozniakMichael ScottMike MarkkulaRod Holt
These five men represented the core leadership of Apple at the time.
Jobs and Wozniak were the original founders.
Mike Markkula had invested $250,000 in Apple during its first year, fueling its rapid expansion.
Rod Holt was a crucial engineer behind the Apple II and a shareholder.
Michael Scott was Apple's first CEO, brought in during 1977 at Markkula's suggestion because Jobs and Wozniak lacked management experience.
The six men sat around the conference table, with the five key Apple figures focusing their attention on Lin Haoran.
Citibank had already informed Lin Haoran that Apple was offering 10% of its shares in exchange for a $10 million investment.
Lin Haoran had no problem with this — he had no intention of haggling.
From what he remembered, when Apple went public at the end of the year, its valuation would reach $1.8 billion, instantly creating four billionaires and over forty millionaires.
Investing $10 million now for 10% equity was an absolute bargain.
Of course, Lin Haoran knew that after the IPO, there would be some dilution of his shares, and later rounds would dilute further.
But he wasn't worried.
He could simply buy back shares later if needed.
If he could maintain his 10% holding, then when Apple's market cap eventually exceeded $2 trillion decades later, his stake alone would be worth over $200 billion.
Given his current fortune, $10 million was an easy investment.
A small investment, high returns — just the kind of deal he loved.
He hadn't thought about trying to acquire more shares, as that might alter Apple's natural development path.
Owning 10% was enough — not too much to disrupt them, not too little to be meaningless.
Being a passive investor was perfect.
"Mr. Lin, after touring our company, do you have any questions? Any thoughts about investing in Apple?" Jobs asked first.
Among everyone present, Jobs held the largest share in Apple — he was the major shareholder.
In Apple's second year, another founder, Ronald Wayne, had sold his 10% stake to Jobs for just $800.
Since then, the ownership structure had changed somewhat due to new investors and key employee grants.
Last year, Apple had already conducted a small financing round, adding 16 investors.
Each received a small stake, and the funds raised were soon used up.
Thus, Apple decided to launch a bigger financing round — offering 10% of the company for $10 million.
Today, Jobs remained the largest shareholder, followed by Mike Markkula and then Wozniak.
"Everyone, the fact that I'm here means I've already agreed to the investment," Lin Haoran said with a smile.
"I'm willing to invest $10 million in Apple!"
The moment Lin Haoran spoke, the room erupted into smiles.
They had secured the $10 million they so desperately needed!
For Apple, this infusion of capital was absolutely critical.
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