"Mr. Lin, using the Hutchison Whampoa shares as collateral is no problem—as long as the loan amount doesn't exceed HK$1 billion. As for Hutchison Whampoa itself, that's also fine. As long as the board approves the loan, I can authorize HSBC to lend HK$500 million to the company."
For Shen Zhou, there was no reason to refuse—banks made money by lending.
He wasn't concerned about the loan to Lin personally. Even if Hutchison Whampoa performed poorly after Lin took over and its valuation dropped, Lin still owned Galaxy Games. There was no risk of him defaulting.
As for the HK$500 million corporate loan, now that HSBC was selling its Hutchison Whampoa shares anyway, it wasn't a major issue. Even if the company floundered later, it could still hold out for a few years, long enough for HSBC to gradually recover some of its funds.
"So, how much is HSBC asking for the Hutchison Whampoa shares?"
Lin finally asked the real question.
"Let the people below handle the specific price negotiations," Shen replied with a smile. "We just need to approve the final agreement. They won't let the talks fall apart."
Lin nodded. "Alright."
Seeing the two were nearly finished, Bao Yugang spoke up:
"Mr. Lin, now it's time for our discussion."
Lin replied immediately,
"Mr. Bao, don't worry. As soon as I finalize the deal with HSBC, I will sell you my Wharf shares."
Of course, the premise was that he first secured the Hutchison Whampoa shares. He would never sell the Wharf shares beforehand—if the HSBC deal fell through afterward, he'd be the one taking a huge loss.
Although everything with Shen Zhou seemed settled, nothing in business was 100% certain. It was better to stay cautious.
Bao Yugang didn't push him. He trusted that Lin wouldn't deceive him on such a matter—he wouldn't want an enemy like Bao.
But Bao did remind him,
"Mr. Lin, there's also the shares of Cangjiang Industries."
Lin nodded.
"I promised those to you, and that still holds."
Then he added,
"But Mr. Bao, I need you to inform Li Ka-shing—unless he sells all his Wharf shares to you, I will retain 5% for myself."
"No problem. I'll notify Mr. Li."
Bao agreed immediately. Lin's condition was favorable to him—why refuse?
Lin's motive was simple: he didn't want Li Ka-shing to keep holding Wharf shares and profit off Bao Yugang's acquisition. But if Li insisted on keeping some shares, then Lin didn't lose either—5% of Cangjiang Industries was still valuable.
By now, Lin and Li Ka-shing were openly hostile. Lin had pressured him using Cangjiang's shares; Li countered by bringing Bao into the fight. Both were unhappy with the other.
Even if they wouldn't take drastic action for now, each would gladly pressure the other when an opportunity arose.
Shen Zhou stood silently, unfazed. Although he favored Li Ka-shing, he hadn't yet reached any formal agreement with him. Why intervene? Besides, if Li experienced too smooth a rise, HSBC wouldn't have the opportunity to "extend a friendly hand" and secure a long-term partnership. A little pressure was beneficial.
Lin said,
"Mr. Bao, we'll discuss our transaction in detail after I finalize things with HSBC. How does that sound?"
"Agreed," Bao said. He was already planning to meet Shen Zhou later about a loan—acquiring Wharf would require a huge amount of capital.
After leaving HSBC, Lin briefed Cheng Yufeng and sent him to negotiate the purchase price with HSBC. Lin's bottom line was clear: a markup of up to 30% was acceptable—anything higher, and the total premium would be too large once stock-market purchases were included.
Lin had also instructed Anyuan to resume secretly buying Hutchison Whampoa shares on the open market. Quiet daily purchases wouldn't attract attention.
Cheng negotiated for two days—quick, considering the amount involved. Without Lin and Shen having already set the general terms, it could easily have taken ten days or more.
Finally, both sides confirmed the transaction:
HSBC sold its 90 million Hutchison Whampoa shares to Lin at the previous trading day's price of HK$7.15 per share—no premium, no discount.
But the contract included two conditions:
After completing the purchase, Lin must mortgage the 90 million shares to HSBC and borrow HK$1 billion.
After gaining control of Hutchison Whampoa, Lin must ensure the board approves a HK$500 million loan from HSBC.
Both loans were standard:
3-year term, 8% annual interest.
HSBC earned no premium on the sale, but HK$1.5 billion in loans at 8% interest meant huge profits.
With deposit rates at 5%, HSBC earned a 3% spread—over three years, 9%, totaling HK$135 million.
For banks, lending money out was essential—unused funds still required paying deposit interest.
For Lin, even with the heavy interest burden, this was an excellent deal.
Buying Hutchison Whampoa with no premium was already a win.
And the borrowed money?
He planned to throw all of it into long-gold futures.
The market was massive, too large for anyone to easily attack. As long as the long-term trend held, Lin was certain it was a guaranteed profit.