Chapter 488: Marathon Oil

……

"Knock...!"

"Please come in!"

Chris Moore entered the door and put the papers in front of the boss.

"As you might expect, Bruce Kuo is privately initiating a merger of the Herman Fund and a merrill lynch stake in the New York State Retired Teachers Foundation. ”

Stan O'Neal picked up the file and looked at it twice, "Did it work?"

"No! Bruce Kwok was rejected!"

Looking at the boss who put down the file, he didn't say anything, "BOSS, is it a warning to Bruce Guo? After all, the Herman Fund and the New York Retired Teachers Foundation hold a combined 7.9% stake in Merrill Lynch. If you are acquired by him, the threat is too great for you. ”

Stan O'Neill nodded, "You call him and say I'll ask him to dinner at Fox that night." ”

"I'll go right away!"

After the office became quiet again, Stan O'Neill's brow furrowed as he looked at the papers in his hand.

"Bruce, don't you always push me!"

……

"Mr. Guo, I don't know how you thought about your proposal last time?"

Harvey Morgan, who found Guo Shouyun for the second time, asked.

"I really want to work with Mr. Morgan, but Google's equity division has been decided a long time ago, and if you add it halfway, it will make everyone dissatisfied, so I am also very difficult. ”

In business negotiations, even if you want to cooperate, don't say yes too much. Otherwise, if the performance is urgent, who is the one who suffers relatively is the one who suffers relatively much.

"Mr. Guo, business cooperation emphasizes fairness. If my conditions are better than other investors, I think I will be a better choice! As for the difficulty, I think that no investment institution will make Mr. Guo feel embarrassed by the matter of Google financing alone! After all, you are the real leader!"

Guo Shouyun smiled faintly, and had to admit that Harvey Morgan, who was born in a big family, had really high emotional intelligence. It doesn't seem too flattering, but it can also make the people who hear it happy.

"That being said, I also have deals with these investment institutions. If I give up, my interests will also be damaged. Guo Shouyun said after a moment of silence.

"If Mr. Guo thinks it's okay, you might as well tell me about it. I think I can help Mr. Guo achieve your trading goals, or even better. ”

Guo Shouyun hesitated for a moment, "Okay! Now that I've said that, I'll talk about it." I intend to acquire a portion of the shares of Marathon Petroleum. ”

"Marathon oil!" Harvey Morgan's pupils narrowed.

Among the top ten oil companies in the United States, the first is undoubtedly ExxonMobil, followed by Chevron that swallowed Texaco, followed by ConocoPhillips, Valero Energy, Marathon Oil, Continental Oil, Unocal Oil, Sun Oil, Alameda Hess, and Chesapeake Energy.

Marathon Petroleum is ranked fifth and is an independent subsidiary of U.S. Steel Corporation. Today, the U.S. stock market is worth about $18 billion. It is one-third larger than the Unocal acquired by Guo Shouyun. Of course, all this is based on the fact that Unocal and Anping Petroleum Company have not merged their businesses. Otherwise, the ranking will have to be reformulated.

Although surprised by Guo's ambitions in the oil industry, Harvey Morgan, who quickly calmed himself down, said: "I didn't expect Mr. Guo to be so interested in the oil industry. ”

"The returns in the energy sector have always been good, and I'm certainly interested. ”

Without delving into Guo Shouyun's more in-depth views on the oil industry, after a moment of simple thought, Harvey Morgan said, "How many shares does Mr. Guo want from Marathon Oil?"

"How much does Mr. Morgan have?"

"4.3%, if Mr. Guo wants more, I can also find another way!"

"I want at least 10% of Marathon Oil. And, I hope this deal doesn't go out of the way to outsiders. Guo Shouyun said after a moment of silence.

"That's fine. However, I need some time to raise this stake. ”

"No problem, I'm not in a hurry. ”

"What about Google...?"

"This time, Google's financing ratio is 20%! Because I have promised many people in advance, I can only give you 3%!"

Harvey Morgan frowned and said, "Mr. Guo, is this ratio too low compared to my efforts?"

"Google is only 3%, and it can't be more. But... I can promise you that when the ruby comes on the market, I'll give you the remaining 7%!"

Harvey Morgan's eyes lit up, and the value of rubies in his eyes was not inferior to Google.

"Mr. Guo must keep his promise!"

"Of course!"

"So we can sign a contract?"

"Let's wait until Mr. Morgan brings over the equity papers of Marathon Oil. ”

"Okay!" Harvey Morgan nodded after a moment's consideration, "I'll get this done as soon as I can." ”

"I'm looking forward to seeing each other next time!"

"Me too!"

After chatting about the key content, Guo Shouyun sent Harvey Morgan out of the house.

"Boss, I just received a call from Stan O'Neill, the CEO of Merrill Lynch, who said that he asked you to have dinner at 7 p.m. at Fox Restaurant on Seventh Avenue!"

Guo Shouyun's eyes flashed, "Did you say why?"

"Nope!"

After nodding his head clearly, "You go and reply to him, just say that I will be on time for the appointment at seven o'clock in the evening." ”

"Yes!"

"Old friend, it seems that it's really you!"

Thinking of this, the corners of Guo Shouyun's mouth quietly hooked.

……

Fox Restaurant, an upscale restaurant located in the middle of New York's landmark Seventh Avenue, specializes in French cuisine. It is more popular with New York gold collars, so it is basically full during the noon and evening hours. This is especially true for the more luxurious and private rooms.

Although Guo Shouyun had heard the name of this restaurant earlier, it was his first time here. The reason is simple, his Chinese stomach is still more accustomed to Chinese food, as for French food, he eats it twice once in a while, and it is nothing to try it. If there are too many, I really don't get used to it.

"Hello sir. Do you have an appointment?"

"Yes, he's in Box 3!"

"Okay, please come with me!"

Under the leadership of the waiter, Guo Shouyun came to the destination smoothly, and then met Stan O'Neill's secretary, who was waiting outside, and was led in by the other party.

"Bruce, long time no see. ”

"Long time no see, O'Neill!"

When they greeted each other, they hugged warmly.

"For your arrival, I have specially prepared a sumptuous French feast. Look, do you still like it?"

After quickly sweeping the food on the dog's table, Guo Shouyun nodded.

"Everything is a classic of French cuisine, O'Neill, thank you!"

"You're so polite. Who made us friends, please be seated!"

After a brief courtesy, the two sat down opposite each other at the table. When they looked at each other, the atmosphere became a little strange.

"Bruce, it's unbelievable! I think when we first met, you were still an entrepreneur with a bit of embarrassment and anxiety under the oppression of Enron. And now, in just two years, you've swallowed Enron, taken Universal and Warner, and become the super-rich chairman of more than a dozen large companies. ”

"O'Neal, you're exalting me too much. I didn't swallow Warner, I just bought some small marginal business from her. As for the super-rich, hehe, my net worth now is not as much as yours. ”

Stan O'Neill smiled faintly, "It doesn't matter who owns the money, the most important thing is who controls it." In this regard, you are more savvy than many old guys who have been in the mall for many years!"

glanced at him, "You invited me to dinner, didn't you just come to compliment me?"

"Of course not. I just think you've made it to New York, and we just haven't seen each other in a long time. By the way, it's just a meal to connect with feelings. But... Bruce, I heard you're planning to buy the Herman Fund?"

"How is it possible that Phoenix has been negotiating with the National City Bank of the United States to acquire her First Franklin Financial Company, how can it be interested in the Herman Fund?"

While speaking, Guo Shouyun's face showed a trace of panic at the 'right time', but it quickly disappeared again.

Of course, it all fell into the eyes of Stan O'Neill on the other side.

"Yes? But someone said he saw Paul Cruz, the CEO of the Herman Foundation, coming in and out of your Long Island estate. ”

"I think your friend must have read it wrong. ”

Guo Shouyun quickly denied.

"I think he's mistaken too. But seriously, if you're planning to buy Merrill Lynch, we can actually talk about it!"

"No! My interest in Merrill Lynch is limited to investment, and I do not plan to acquire, let alone control. I remember saying that when we first met two years ago. Besides, one phoenix is enough for my headache, and I'm not going to ask for a more troublesome Merrill Lynch. ”

"I see. Stan O'Neill smiled and nodded, "But that's a shame to say." With your financial talents, if we join forces, we will definitely be able to take Merrill Lynch to new heights, surpassing Morgan Stanley and becoming the world's largest investment bank!"

"Forget it, I'm not good at investment banking. Therefore, he has not dared to expand the securities business within Phoenix. ”

Despite what he said, the real reason why Guo Shouyun was reluctant to join Merrill Lynch was that he and Stan O'Neal were 'one mountain and no two tigers', and neither of them wanted to give the greatest power to anyone except himself.

If Stan O'Neal is smart enough to lead the company to a brighter future, as Apple's Steve Jobs and Amazon's Jeff Bezos did, he can fully delegate power. But in fact, the overinvestment of the other party in real estate-related CDS and CDO bonds directly brought Merrill Lynch to the brink of bankruptcy in the subprime mortgage crisis.

How could such a person make him the CEO of Merrill Lynch? Is Guo Shouyun unable to get along with his own money? Therefore, he must take down Merrill Lynch and then drive this guy away.