Chapter 9: You're Afraid I Won't Be Able to Repay the Loan, Aren't You?
Yang Changdao was very familiar with this type of collateralized lending.
Although the finance company would still conduct a thorough investigation afterward, making an initial judgment regarding the authenticity of the documents was not difficult.
Besides, loans were generally only disbursed after the investigation was completed.
Given Lin Haoran's status, there was no need for him to falsify anything in this regard.
Lin Wan'an enjoyed an excellent reputation within business circles, and that reputation naturally benefited Lin Haoran as well.
"Haoran, I've reviewed everything. Using this cement factory and the land deed as collateral, the maximum loan amount would be a little over ten million Hong Kong dollars. In addition, considering your status as the young master of Wan'an Group, I can personally approve enough to bring the total to twenty million Hong Kong dollars. But fifty million? That's impossible," Yang Changdao said bluntly.
"Uncle Yang, twenty million Hong Kong dollars isn't my goal. If I only needed twenty million, there would be no reason for me to come to you. You know as well as I do that a high-quality client like me could easily obtain that amount from HSBC, Standard Chartered, or other major banks.
"Furthermore, Hong Kong has seen the establishment of many new banks recently. I'm sure they'd be more than willing to do business with a client like me. Yet I didn't go to any of those banks—I came directly to you, Uncle Yang."
Lin Haoran shook his head.
His words might have sounded somewhat blunt, but they were entirely reasonable.
Compared to other banks, Yumin Finance Company held little advantage.
Why should he choose to work with them?
From a certain perspective, the vast amount of money controlled by banks was, bluntly speaking, the depositors' money.
If those funds could not be invested or loaned out effectively and instead remained idle within the bank, the institution would eventually face significant losses because its capital would not be generating returns.
Moreover, banks had to pay interest to depositors.
This was one of the key reasons people were willing to place their money in banks.
Without reasonable interest returns, why would anyone deposit their savings?
Therefore, even a well-funded institution like Yumin Bank, a state-owned Malaysian bank, needed to maximize profits from its capital.
Many clients chose Hong Kong Malaya Yumin Finance Company precisely because it was willing to issue larger loans than traditional banks.
If Lin Haoran had been an established entrepreneur with a proven track record, Yang Changdao would naturally have been willing to lend more.
But Lin Haoran was simply too young.
Furthermore, he was not the actual controller of Wan'an Group.
If too much money were lent to him, the risks would be considerable.
For that reason, Yang Changdao did not dare approve a larger loan.
There was a certain type of person in this world:
While others focused on earning interest from loans, these people quietly set their sights on the loan principal itself.
Having spent years in the finance industry, Yang Changdao had seen plenty of such cases.
Naturally, he worried about encountering someone like that.
"Haoran, how about this? As the Hong Kong General Manager of Yumin Finance Company, I'll approve thirty million Hong Kong dollars for you. Given your circumstances, that's already the highest amount I can authorize.
"You also know that Yumin Finance Company doesn't belong to me. I'm only the regional manager. Any loan I approve still requires secondary approval from higher management, and they'll conduct their own risk assessment.
"If the risk assessment fails, then no matter what promises I make, it won't matter. Wouldn't you agree?"
After some thought, Yang Changdao decided to increase the amount by another ten million.
It wasn't that he didn't want to lend more.
After all, the more money he loaned out, the better his performance metrics would be.
However, he couldn't bear the risk.
If the money couldn't be recovered in the future, the responsibility would fall squarely on his shoulders.
"Uncle Yang, you're worried that I won't have the ability to repay the loan when it comes due, aren't you?" Lin Haoran asked with a smile.
Yang Changdao remained silent.
Lin Haoran's request had placed him in a difficult position.
Judging from his expression, that was indeed the exact reason.
If Lin Haoran's only goal was to acquire shares of Wharf Holdings, then thirty million Hong Kong dollars would actually be sufficient.
In fact, having too much money would make it harder to secretly accumulate shares.
But Wharf Holdings wasn't his only target.
He had another objective in mind as well.
Therefore, if he could secure an additional twenty million Hong Kong dollars, he would have far more room to maneuver.
"Uncle Yang, my land and factory can all be pledged as collateral to your company. That means over ten million dollars of the loan is essentially risk-free.
"As for the remaining thirty-plus million, what you're really worried about is that I'll take the money and disappear.
"How about this? Let's put everything on the table.
"The reason I'm borrowing this money is because I intend to acquire a listed company.
"This company currently has a market value of around one hundred million Hong Kong dollars, and it's an extremely high-quality listed enterprise that has never posted a loss since going public.
"What I need is to become its major shareholder.
"As for which company it is, I can't reveal that for the time being.
"However, once the acquisition is completed, I can temporarily pledge those shares to Yumin Finance Company as additional collateral.
"That way, Uncle Yang won't have any risk concerns.
"Besides, I'm the young master of the Lin family. Wan'an Group isn't going anywhere.
"My father has only two sons.
"Even if I somehow fail to repay the loan, Uncle Yang can simply go to my father and collect the debt from Wan'an Group.
"That further reduces the risk.
"Additionally, if Uncle Yang helps me secure this loan, I'll provide a five-hundred-thousand Hong Kong dollar 'tea fee' whenever you wish."
He smiled calmly.
"I believe that, with Uncle Yang's position, persuading Yumin Bank to approve this loan shouldn't be difficult.
"So tell me, are these terms enough to move you?
"Business always involves a certain degree of risk.
"Frankly speaking, with the conditions I'm offering, the risk has already been reduced to the lowest possible level.
"The only reason Uncle Yang is still hesitating is because I'm too young.
"But being young isn't my fault.
"Even if my investment loses money, it's not as though the entire fifty million will simply vanish overnight.
"When repayment time comes, the one who suffers losses will be me—not Yumin Finance Company.
"The entire Lin family's business empire is rooted in Hong Kong.
"I couldn't run away even if I wanted to.
"If Uncle Yang agrees, then we have a deal.
"But if these terms still can't persuade you, then I'll have no choice but to seek another bank or finance company."
Lin Haoran didn't want to waste any more time bargaining with Yang Changdao.
He decided to state his bottom line directly.
The listed company he mentioned was naturally not Wharf Holdings.
Wharf was a giant beyond his ability to control at this stage.
At present, Lin Haoran merely intended to use the upcoming battle for control of Wharf as an opportunity to earn a substantial amount of startup capital that would truly belong to him.
Among Hong Kong's many listed companies, he already had a target in mind.
A five-hundred-thousand Hong Kong dollar "tea fee" was no small sum.
It represented one percent of the fifty-million-dollar loan.
Meanwhile, bank interest rates in Hong Kong during this era generally ranged between 5.00% and 5.25% annually.
In this fiercely competitive banking environment, some banks had even lowered rates below five percent in order to attract customers.
Of course, Lin Haoran wasn't in a position to negotiate interest rates right now.
His most important goal was simple:
Secure the funds as quickly as possible.
(End of Chapter)
Comments
Post a Comment