Chapter 78: The Absurd Beginning of Privatization

Although some things were done by Jia Lei and the director of the Geldarsky plant, no one was unaware of them, for example, the secretary of the securities department of the steel plant, Jinnapova, found out.

"Director Geldarsky I want you to explain to me why you have so many shares in the factory?" asked Jinnapova.

"Is there anything wrong with the fact that you have entrusted me with these stocks?" asked Director Gardowski.

"But you have too many shares, as far as I know, the management of the entire factory has only 20 percent of the shares, and you alone own 15 percent!

"Of course it's not possible that I'm going to take someone else's shares, someone will definitely speak. Isn't it?", asked Director Gairdsky.

Kinnapova nodded, she hadn't heard any such complaints.

"Well, my Miss Kinnapova! I'm busy every day with the production of the factory, and I don't have the time to talk to you about such frivolous things. Would you please leave!", said Director Gaildowski.

"Wait a minute, I have one last question to reflect!" said Kinnapova.

"What other questions do you have?" asked Director Gaildowski, frowning.

"I found out that the owner of the imported goods supermarket in the factory was buying shares in the steel mill on a large scale. He's taken a lot of our stock now, and I expect at least 20 percent!" said Kinnapova worriedly.

"The supermarket owner is collecting stocks, and everyone in the factory knows about it, what's the big deal?" asked the director of the factory, Geldarsky, who didn't care.

"But 20 percent of the shares are enough to get on the board of directors of our steel plant! How can we get a foreigner on the board of our steel plant?" Ms. Kinnapova said.

"Oh my God, Kinnapova, how can you say that? The government is now trying its best to bring in foreign investors, and it is a good thing that some of us in the factory can take a fancy to it! You still have such a ridiculous idea, please let me out! I don't want to listen to you anymore!" said the director of the factory, Gaildowski.

"The director of the factory is really wrong, I think the people in the factory are selling their shares at ......a loss," Kinnapova continued.

"Please, please, I've got some work to do! The secretary pleases you to get Miss Kinnapova out." Director Gairdsky shouted.

The secretary came in, and then he Kinnapova was taken away, but unfortunately Kinnapova was not reconciled, and she told a few friends about her suspicions.

Director Gairdsky really didn't lie, he has been very busy lately!

On the one hand, he kept all the workshops of the steel mill running at full capacity, and on the other hand, he had to use the funds in the factory's account to buy things in his own name, and then distribute them to the workers to buy the hearts and minds of the people.

"Hey, the coking plant? I hope you're sending me a batch of coke?" said Director Gaildowski as he picked up the phone.

"Okay, but I want to ask, when will the payment owed to us by your factory be settled?" the other party asked.

"We don't have any money in the factory now, you can wait! I will definitely give it to you at the end of the year." Said Director Gaildowski.

"Alright then, you remember that you have to give money at the end of the year. The coking plant man nodded in agreement.

Under the old system of the former Soviet Union, year-end settlement was a common occurrence. Anyway, everyone has known each other for more than 30 years, and the director of the coking plant doesn't care about it.

Of course, the same conversation arose in the iron mines and coal mines, to which the director of the plant Girdarsky intended not to pay a penny from this day on.

*****

1 September, 1992

According to Yeltsin's oath, anyone born before September 1 of this year will receive a privatization securities. Since that day, the Russian government has successively begun to issue privatization securities to its citizens.

Because of the slow printing of privatized securities, and the fact that many state capitals have not yet had time to convert their subsidiaries into joint-stock enterprises, the timing of the issuance of privatized securities varies from state to state and federal jurisdiction.

That is to say, since September 1, only some people have received privatization securities, and only some enterprises have also completed the conversion of the shareholding system, which has buried hidden dangers for the privatization of the whole people in country E.

On September 2, 1992, Jia Lei returned to Moscow on this day, because today is a special day for Mikhail Khodorkovsky, one of Russia's later seven oligarchs and the richest man.

"Hello Mikhail, congratulations on the birth of your daughter! This is my gift to her, a set of jewelry for a Chinese newborn. The longevity lock and longevity bracelet in China mean that the child will live a long life in the future. Jia Lei said.

Then he gave a specially prepared gift to Mikhail Khodorkovsky, and the young bank president was very happy to receive this gift with good wishes.

"Thank you, Jia Lei, I'm very happy that you can come to the celebration! This time the people who came to the party are all my friends, you can go and say hello to them. Khodorkovsky said.

"Oh, these are the big names in Moscow, and it's my pleasure to greet them. Jia Lei said happily, and then Khodorkovsky introduced Jia Lei as a partner to his friends.

"Jia Lei, this is my good friend Chubais, Chubais is our partner and shareholder of our bank, Jia Lei, a banker from Huaxia!" Khodorkovsky introduced to both parties.

"My name is Jia Lei, I am from Huaxia, and I am a shareholder of Citibank. It's a pleasure to meet you, Your Excellency the Prime Minister! I used to see you on TV a lot, but I didn't expect you to be even more energetic in real life than on TV!" Jia Lei immediately patted his ass and said.

This is the real power figure in charge of the privatization of Russia, the target of all businessmen!

"Oh! Are you from Huaxia Banker? This is really quite rare! Recently, I have met many bankers from Western countries, and I have never met a Huaxia banker, after all, private banks are not allowed in Huaxia? By the way, what kind of business does your bank run?" asked Chubais curiously.

"My bank is mainly engaged in foreign exchange business, of course, I am also interested in investment and loan business, I am willing to contribute to the better development of eRoss and do something within my ability!" Jia Lei was impassioned, and words like this kind of scene must be beautiful enough.

"Oh! The Chinese people are really the brothers of the people of E, since you are a friend of Khodorkovsky, then when the following enterprises need loans in the future, I will let the people below go to you for help. Chubais said.

"Very welcome!" Jia Lei nodded.

"Oh, Khodorkovsky, your daughter is so lovely and a beautiful child at first glance, have you thought of what to name her?" asked Chubais.

"I thought about it, my little darling will be called Mikhail Khodorkovskaya Anastasia!" said Khodorkovsky.

"That's a good name! I think little Anastasia must be the luckiest thing for her to be your daughter. Chubais said.

"No, I don't think it's good luck for my Anastasia to get a privatized note with a face value of ten thousand rubles if she is born a day earlier. It's a pity that Anastasia was born on September 2 and missed it......" Khodorkovsky said regretfully.

"That's not going to work, our little princess is lucky, and I won't let her down! Well, I'll postpone the deadline for the registration of privatization securities by one day, so that your daughter will receive a privatization voucher worth 10,000 rubles, like all Russians born before this date!

"Oh, Chubais, you're so nice!" said Khodorkovsky happily, and everyone in the room applauded and congratulated him.

"Hehe......" Jia Lei was caught in the crowd with a stiff expression, applauding and laughing with everyone.

"Oh my God! Such a big thing as privatization for the whole people can be postponed for a day because of the birth of a child, this Chubais is too unreliable! Such a person is still the head of country E? What if privatization and shock therapy can succeed here!" Jia Lei complained in his heart.

Don't underestimate the time of this day, according to the original regulations, people who died on September 1 can also get a privatization securities, but in this way, the family of this group of people will not get this inheritance.

Similarly, as a large country with a population of hundreds of millions, I don't know how many newborns are born in one day, Jia Lei thinks that this number must be above 1,000, right?

So it's not for nothing that Chubais has been at the top of the list of supervillains in country E for decades after stepping down!

****

No matter how much Jia Lei looks down on Chubais's decision, Jia Lei still likes privatized securities.

"Hang a sign in front of our bank, our bank will buy a large number of privatized securities. Jia Lei said to Pete.

"Okay, but how should the purchase price of this security be determined?" asked Pete.

"Since its face value is 10,000 rubles, then we will charge it at 10,000 rubles!" Jia Lei thought about it and said.

"That's not right, I just saw someone on the street selling this privatization security, it's only 5,000 roubles! Isn't it too high for us to pay 10,000 roubles?" said Kerr.

"The prices in your country are so chaotic, it seems that I have to go around the streets before I can make a home for it!" Jia Lei said helplessly.

"All right, I'll go with you!" said Kerr.

Because the privatization securities were sold in the bank, Jia Lei first went to a nearby bank to take a look, and he found that many Moscows happily walked into the people's bank and paid a handling fee of 25 rubles to receive a privatization securities.

"How much do you plan to sell these privatized securities?" Jia Lei walked over and asked.

"10,000 rubles! Doesn't it say 10,000 rubles? One person said.

"Then don't you plan to keep him to buy stocks or other things? I heard that you can even buy a house and land with this?" asked Jia Lei.

"But we only have one privatization coupon per person, and no matter what we buy, it's not enough, and it's really useless. Another person said.

"Why do you come to get it if you think it's useless?" Dasha asked.

"Because we want to sell it!" said one man without hesitation.

"If you really want to sell it, I'll buy it for 10,000 rubles. Jia Lei said.

"Okay! Here you go!" Several young people sold the privatization coupons they had received to Jia Lei.

"Let's go to the square in the center of the city, there are more people there and we should be able to see it better. Jia Lei said.

So they came to Pushkinsi Square in the center of the city, and Jia Lei found that someone actually sold privatized securities for 20,000 rubles a piece, but when Jia Lei walked to the Kursky station, he found that someone actually bought a privatized securities for only two bottles of inferior vodka worth 500 rubles, plus two small sausages.

"It seems that not everyone in Moscow understands the value of privatized securities? Ordinary people can sell it for as much as they want!" Jia Lei thought for a while and said.

"But boss, now that the market price of privatized securities outside is so chaotic, how much do we have to spend to collect it?" asked Pete, puzzled.

"For the time being, let's charge it at the par price of 10,000 rubles, the number of privatized securities is still small, and the price may drop if the number increases in a few days, right?" Jia Lei thought for a while and said.

After all, only Moscow and a handful of places have issued privatization securities, and the rest have not.

After Jia Lei received the privatization securities in Moscow, he would have people take them on the train back to Chelyabinsk on the same day to buy the shares sold by the steel plant to the public sector!

"Boss, how troublesome do you want to let people run once every day or two?, why don't we wait for the price of the privatization securities to come down for a while, and then get them back together when we buy more of them?" Pete suggested.

"I'd rather spend a little more money and make a few more trips now, and I want to buy the shares of the steel mill as soon as possible! The steel mill is a fat meat, and there are many people staring at it. Jia Lei said.

****

Kinnapova ran as fast as she could, her shoes falling off and her feet scratched, but she did not dare to stop, because several hooligans were chasing her behind her.

Eventually, Kinnapova couldn't run, and she was blocked in the alley by a few thugs who snatched her purse, scratched her clothes, and pulled her hair.

"No, don't, please leave me alone......" said Kinnapova, crouching in the corner with her head in her hands, shuddering, thinking of the tragic fate she was about to face.

But at this critical moment, these little hooligans actually stopped.

"Do you know you're scared?" asked a little rascal with a knife pointing at Kinnapova's face.

"Please let me go, I can give you all the money!" said Kinnapova crying.

"It's good to know that you're scared! Don't talk too much when you remember, don't talk nonsense! Otherwise, this time we will draw your clothes, and next time it will be your turn. The little rascal threatened viciously.

"Who are you, who sent them?" asked Kinnapova in fear.

"Director Geldarsky asked me to say hello to you on his behalf!" said the little rascal, and led the men away.

"So it's him?" said Kinnapova through gritted teeth after the others had gone away.

****