The birth of the Hong Kong Island family

In the first five months of this year, public opinion in Hong Kong began to favor real estate developers and accused the Hong Kong government of not selling land.

However, in late May, major real estate developers in Hong Kong jointly "joined hands to invest in land" at the land auction. The original intention was to put pressure on the Hong Kong government. However, public opinion immediately changed direction.

On May 27, "Ta Kung Pao" published an editorial, which said: "It can be said that this is a rare neglected situation in the auction house in recent years. In the past, most of the bidding was fierce and hit new highs... In fact, the land price (official land) suddenly dropped After all, a one-third plunge is not a blessing to Hong Kong's overall economy. Taking the reaction to the land sale on May 26 as an example, the stock market was the first to be affected, with real estate stocks plummeting and investors at a loss..."

"Land prices are too high and need to be repaid; property prices are too expensive and are out of touch with people's purchasing power, so adjustments need to be made. This is the consensus of everyone, and we hope to see this situation emerge in an orderly, gentle and slow manner. Rather than a sharp rise followed by a sharp fall. The land sale on May 26 was the product of special circumstances and factors, and cannot be based on this. Otherwise, it will increase the instability of Hong Kong's economy and be detrimental to a smooth transition..."

"Many people have objections to the developer's approach of 'joining forces to invest in land' during the land sale on May 26. This does not mean that developers are not allowed to form consortiums to purchase land, but that a disguised monopoly cannot occur. If this is the case. , it’s not a fair market.”

"Capitalist" magazine said: "Before the 1970s, real estate developers often cooperated to invest in land in Hong Kong's official land auctions... With the institutionalization of the official land auction system and payment terms, and the self-discipline of real estate developers, the kind of joint efforts in the past The methods of lowering prices and sharing profits privately are no longer seen. The old tricks were repeated this time, which aroused fierce criticism from the public."

According to market analysts, in the past six months or so, the Hong Kong government has continued to tighten restrictions on the purchase and sale of buildings, which has had an effect in stabilizing property prices. Homebuyers welcome the move, but real estate developers are dissatisfied. Therefore, they have joined forces to lower land prices and demonstrate to the Hong Kong government not to give in. Press forward step by step.

Others believe that if real estate developers join forces to monopolize land prices, the government's treasury revenue will be reduced. The government's money has to be spent in Hong Kong, and the United Kingdom cannot get a cent. It is not advisable for real estate developers to sacrifice government treasury revenue; Some people believe that real estate developers have 'purchased flat goods' and will not 'buy flat and sell flat'. Homebuyers can't even think of buying a flat. Real estate developers lower land prices just to gain more astonishing profits.

Words of criticism and condemnation are pouring in at real estate developers from all directions. This group of real estate developers had just "exchanged fire" with the Hong Kong government and "won a great victory", but not a single cheer was heard. They were immediately placed in an 'isolated' situation in Hong Kong, which they did not expect.

Cheung Kong Group.

Lin Zhichao looked at the news in the newspaper with a look of helplessness on his face. Cheung Kong Group was purely 'coerced'. After all, as the 'handsome tiger' of Hong Kong real estate, there is no reason why he should not be on the same front as the major real estate developers.

To be honest, with his current worth, a little less money from real estate is nothing!

He picked up the phone and dialed a number.

After a while, Lin Ruihuan and Zhou Huaian came to his office.

"Huai'an, give up the manager positions of those two projects and don't take them!"

Last time at the auction: the auctioneer opened the bid at HK$1.8 billion (for a piece of land in Fanling), with an additional HK$20 million for each bid. After the bidding started, no buyer accepted the bid for 8 minutes. In the auction house, the word "long" could be used when no one accepted the bid for 8 minutes. Afterwards, Oriental Group was the first to bear the price, Bailibao bid, and then New World raised the price to HK$1.98 billion. Several major bidding consortiums, ‘Ear Biters’, are extremely busy. During the bidding process, the consortium of various consortiums was finally completed, and Oriental Group finally came forward to bid for HK$2.04 billion.

There are 12 developers buying this land, including Cheung Kong Holdings, Oriental Group, New World, SHKP, Sino, Kerry, Hang Lung, Henderson, Swire, Peribo, Development Bank of Singapore, and China Overseas. Among them, Dagu is British-owned; Sino, Kerry, and Development Bank of Singapore are Hong Kong companies owned by overseas Chinese in Southeast Asia; Huaxia Overseas is Chinese-owned and is affiliated to the Ministry of Construction of China.

The total investment in the entire development plan is approximately HK$3 billion, with Cheung Kong serving as the project manager.

The second land auction in Yuen Long is simply a replica of the first land auction. The starting price was HK$480 million, with each lot worth HK$10 million. After only three bids, the auction went completely cold, and the auctioneer had to settle for HK$510 million.

The number of consortium combinations in the second land is even greater, reaching 14. In addition to the 12 consortiums mentioned above, Zhuangshi Enterprises and Kwong Sang Hong are also pleased to join.

Cheung Kong Group did not bid for either land, but it was elected as the "leader" by everyone. After all, Cheung Kong Group is the "handsome tiger".

Now that Lin Zhichao has seen the turbulent public opinion, he has to start taking a stand no matter what!

Zhou Huaian nodded and said, "Okay, I'll do it right away!"

He also understands the seriousness of the matter. If he goes to the Hong Kong government, all the major real estate developers will not be pleased. And the boss is a person who cherishes his reputation, so he must resign.

Lin Zhichao then said to Lin Ruihuan: "The Hong Kong government will not give up and will definitely launch a more severe plan to crack down on property speculation. If so, we will bring together the real estate chamber of commerce to express our support in principle for the Hong Kong government's plan to crack down on property speculation. This matter must be discussed with Let’s communicate with the people from the Real Estate Chamber of Commerce and stop resisting.”

Lin Ruihuan nodded and said, "I understand what father means!"

Of course, the Real Estate Chamber of Commerce will not hold on any longer. I believe it will assess the situation and make appropriate concessions. (Currently, the chairman of the real estate developers is Stanley Ho, and the spokesperson of the Real Estate Chamber of Commerce is Liang Zhijian, general manager of New World Development)

A week later.

The Hong Kong government, which has lost both its money and face, has introduced more severe measures to combat speculation.

Medium- and long-term measures include plans to increase land supply and increase the supply of "medium-priced" units in public housing and private buildings within a few years to ensure the stability of the property market.

Measures in the first phase include: reducing internal subscription from 50% to 10%; selling off-the-plan properties from the current two years before moving in to 6-9 months before moving in; and increasing the deposit for buying a property from the current 5%. to 10%.etc.

Relevant officials from the Hong Kong government said that reducing government tax revenue is not the most important consideration. The most important thing is to enable ordinary citizens to buy ideal units.

Hong Kong real estate developers 'assessed the situation' and wisely issued a statement expressing their 'principal agreement' with the Hong Kong government's measures to combat speculation.

Leung Chi-kin, spokesman for the Hong Kong Real Estate Developers Association and general manager of New World Development, expressed his support in principle for the Hong Kong government’s measures to curb property prices and believed that the measures can effectively prevent speculators from entering the market. However, there are reservations about the measures to shorten the sale time and restrict buyers from reselling the property after signing the deed.

He said that the measures announced this time are very comprehensive, including short-term measures to combat speculators entering the market, curb property prices, and long-term measures to increase land supply, which can alleviate the tight housing demand in Hong Kong. The Real Estate Developers Association will try its best to cooperate with the government to comply with and implement the announced measures.

After the implementation of the measures, speculation in the Hong Kong property market subsided and property prices fell.

Users are happy, speculators are unhappy, and developers are mostly pessimistic.

Lin Zhichao came to Wharf Group, and Lin Ruihai walked in happily.

"Dad, Southeast Asian countries have implemented freely convertible capital accounts, and their financial markets are basically fully open. The time has come for us to cash out!"

Lin Zhichao smiled. The net capital value of Wharf Group in Southeast Asia (excluding Singapore) has reached 16 to 18 billion Hong Kong dollars. However, they only invested a total of 2 billion Hong Kong dollars back then. Now they have made 8 to 9 times profit, which is quite ideal.

In general, it is the appreciation of the leverage (loan) multiplied by 4 to 5 times.

Nowadays, these countries have taken the initiative to achieve "free convertibility", which means that the money they earn can easily escape, just like Japan back then.

Of course, it's not that these countries are stupid, but that they believe that "free convertibility" is a means to attract foreign investment and improve the business environment in the local market.

Of course, this kind of thing has pros and cons. For small countries, it is beneficial. Attracting foreign investment is conducive to economic development. For big countries, they have the ability to "self-development and self-digestion", so it is not impossible to implement capital controls. .

Of course, the final test still needs to be written in history.

According to Lin Zhichao's understanding, the per capita GDP of Malaysia in later generations is higher than that of China, Thailand is less than 70% of China's, and Singapore's is a full seven times.

"Then gradually sell off the assets in Southeast Asia. Singapore does not need to pay attention to it for the time being, and strive to gradually sell it off in one and a half to two years. In Times Mall, just retain some shares and continue to manage it."

Times Square is the signature shopping mall of the Wharf Group, but it is not a registered brand, but a global brand.

"I see!"

With his father's guidance, Lin Ruihai suddenly became confident.

Every time there is an asset transfer, my father is the absolute authoritative figure, and he has never failed to do so (almost fifty years)!

Then, Lin Zhichao said: "How is the progress of investing in U.S. commercial real estate?"

Although Wharf Group is not as profitable as Cheung Kong Group, Lin Ruihai has the support of Lin Zhichao, so he conducted a rights issue to raise funds at the beginning of the year, raising a total of 2.5 billion Hong Kong dollars; The capital was Lin Zhichao asking Hengfeng Bank to lend him a loan and repay it in the future.

Originally there was no problem in paying him directly, but with Lin Ruihai's worth, there would be no problem in repaying him in the future, so this was no exception. Moreover, Lin Ruihai has his own private investment company and is considered to be somewhat wealthy.

Lin Ruihai said: "The progress is going very smoothly. We are buying some commercial properties that are easy to manage. We have purchased about 2 billion Hong Kong dollars in assets."

Lin Zhichao nodded. The Wharf Group has invested a lot in the mainland, including the tallest building in Shanghai (investment of 600-800 million US dollars), Shanghai Times Square (investment of 300 million US dollars), as well as Times Square and Link Card in many cities. Buddha Department Store, especially in the field of real estate (residential) development, has an area similar to Cheung Kong Group. In short, the mainland market is huge, so there is no need to worry about lack of funding channels.

Of course, Wharf Group can also develop overseas, especially the commercial real estate market in Europe and the United States.

"Well, but you have to remember that with me as my backing, you can have higher debts; after all, if I make a mistake, I will compensate you. But if I don't give you guidance, then you have to be conservative in your investments. Keep your debt low, and the world won’t always be peaceful.”

Lin Ruihai said seriously: "Remember my father's teachings. These businesses were built by my father with great hard work. We brothers all know how to cherish them and will invest prudently."

With their father Lin Zhichao here, their brothers have a backer, but they have never thought about what they would do without their father.

This is not because their brothers are incompetent, but because their brothers have also understood over the years that whether they can live longer than their father is another matter.

This is not their 'pessimistic thinking' or 'to please their father', but when the brothers were with their father, they found that their father's mental state was better than their sons.

Of course, they also hope in their hearts that their father can raise a third generation.

Being a 'good wife' to their father has always been their idea.

Time flies and autumn arrives in a blink of an eye.

As the saying goes, the crisp autumn air is a good time for outdoor activities. Rich people generally want to play golf for fun.

Lam Chi-chiu, Cheng Yu-tung, Lee Shau-kee, and Lee Ka-shing are considered regular golfers at the Royal Fanling Golf Club. They compete frequently on weekdays and have become "dead friends".

On this day, the four of them played golf again and won or lost HK$250,000 in one shot.

Since the four people have different levels and physical strength, everyone knows the basics, so it is natural to implement a 'concession system'.

Fanling golf is an "eighteen-hole" golf course, and each hole requires several strokes. Everyone knows each other's skill level.

Lee Shau Kee's physical strength and football skills are not as good as those of Zheng Yutong, and Li Jiacheng's physical strength is not as good as Zheng Yutong's. Compared with Lin Zhichao, the three of them are still different. After all, Lin Zhichao's physical strength and football skills are also good.

Lee Shau Kee took the lead in playing the avoidance card and said, "No way, Lin Sheng and Brother Tong are physically and technically better than us. I'm afraid we will lose tens of millions after this round. It's too wild!"

Zheng Yutong smiled like a Maitreya Buddha and said: "You haven't won a fight with a stick, so you should negotiate the terms first and then decide whether to fight or not?"

Li Jiacheng also joked and wanted to reject the game, saying: "My physical strength is not that good. Now I am fighting against those young people, such as Lin Jianyue and Zhao Shiguang. I can still compete!"

Lin Zhichao immediately raised his eyebrows and said, "You're all here, the worst I can do is let you two strokes per hole, and Ah Tong let you one stroke. What do Shau Kei and Ah Cheng think?"

Li Shauji and Li Jiacheng were immediately interested. After all, they only scored six or seven holes in one hole. It was hard to say whether they would win or lose!

Next, the four people had a battle.

In a four-player game, the competition is to see who scores the 18th hole by the number of strokes, and then the last player loses the most because he has to pay the other three people. It is similar to the bloody battle of Sichuan Mahjong. The loser really pays three families.

Game start!

For 18 holes of golf, a four-person round basically lasts 4 to 5 hours, but four people decided to play three rounds, which means it takes two days.

During this period, Lee Shau Kee had bad luck and did not want to give up midway.

But because it was agreed beforehand, if you give up midway, you will lose 1 million to the other three people.

Lee Shau Kee was unwilling to give in and insisted on paying everyone to finish the fight.

The result was that Lee Shau Kee lost a total of 14 million!

Li Jiacheng also lost 6 million, and Lin Zhichao and Zheng Yutong became winners at the same time, winning 12 million and 8 million respectively.

Lin Zhichao conceded two strokes per hole, while Zheng Yutong conceded one stroke per hole. You can imagine how good Lin Zhichao's physical strength and skills are!

You know, the golf skills of Hong Kong's richest people are not bad!

After it was over, Li Shauji and Li Jiacheng shook their heads.

"The difference in physical strength is too great. Even compared to Brother Tong, I can't compare!"

"That's right. It seems that I will have to fight with young people in the future. Although they have good physical strength, their skills are inferior. They can still give it a try!"

"Lin Sheng, I say you should just go play a professional game. Brother Tong doesn't have a certificate from the London game!"

Afterwards, everyone was resigned to the defeat!

Lin Zhichao was also satisfied. With a handicap of two strokes per hole, he could still win a lot of money, which he did not expect.

Of course, after playing three rounds of golf in two days, Lee Shau Kee and Lee Jiacheng were really physically exhausted!

"What are you trying to do! I may not be able to beat those professional players. In business competitions, I can't win."

"Haha, that's true!"

Everyone ended the battle happily. As for the money won and lost, checks will be sent to them later. Of course, they will not write checks on the spot, otherwise, if people know about it, the impact of 'betting on football' will not be very good.

The next day.

A certain weekly magazine, which is all-pervasive, still broke the big news that shocked the whole of Hong Kong: there was a golf match at Fanling Golf Course with a win or loss of tens of millions. A ‘bonus’ golf tournament involving HK$20 million (nearly US$2.5 million) is just a world-class professional golf tournament!

For a time, Lin Zhichao, Li Shauji, Zheng Yutong, and Li Jiacheng stood at the pinnacle of public opinion.

Golf is regarded as a noble sport for the wealthy. A membership in Hong Kong is about the same price as a high-end residential unit. The transferable corporate membership of the Royal Golf Club was worth more than 3 million Hong Kong dollars in 1992. By mid-1994, it was sold to 12 million Hong Kong dollars! Non-transferable ordinary membership, you have to wait 20 years for your turn.

Golf was originally a fashionable thing for foreigners. As the Chinese gained dominance, the number of Chinese golfers gradually increased. Those who are friends with waves are either rich or noble. Lin Zhichao, Zheng Yutong, Li Jiacheng, Li Shauji, the late Guo Desheng, as well as business upstarts Lin Jianyue, Tang Youqian, Zhao Shiguang, Rong Zhijian, etc. are all big friends on TRON.

Rumors about rich people gambling have been around for a long time, and the rich have avoided talking about it or denied it.

Therefore, there is no substantive evidence in a certain weekly magazine this time. After all, when the rich play golf, they only make verbal promises and will not write checks on the spot; and the employees of the golf course do not dare to take the risk to say another word.

Therefore, the content revealed by the weekly magazine this time has not been supported!

On the contrary, Zheng Yutong, who has always been "uncompressed" in the media, revealed some news: "Betting on gambling does exist, but it is only among friends. In fact, to put it bluntly, gambling is fake. Today you are the winner, and tomorrow he is the winner. , in the end it’s not a draw, there’s no win or loss. It’s just a game with a gambling nature, so you can make yourself more attentive and make progress faster!”

Although no more information was revealed, it also proves that the rich are lucky when they play football!

Cheng Yutong and Stanley Ho are rich people who prefer to be interviewed by the media. Lee Shau Kee has always kept a low profile. As for the late Kwok Desheng and Chen Zangxi, they are both 'hermits'.

As for Lin Zhichao, I can't say that he likes to be interviewed, but he is a rich man who is easy to talk to. (End of chapter)