In the blink of an eye.

A week passed, and Tang Bao remained in London and did not return to the United States. During this time, in addition to attending a board meeting of BP Oil, he was also looking for opportunities to open a branch of Phoenix Investment Group in London. Previously, Phoenix Investment Group's business has always been in the United States, and after more than two years of consolidation and development, Tang Bao felt that it was time to extend its tentacles into Europe.

The first place to visit is London, England. Because of the City of London, two years ago, under the strong intervention of the Thatcher cabinet, the city implemented a thorough reform, deregulation, the introduction of competition, and the originally very closed financial city to the global market.

Arguably.

The City of London will become one of the most competitive financial centers in the world, and Tang Bao cannot ignore it. Besides, he has many plans for the future in Europe.

At this time, the establishment of a branch in London was tantamount to establishing an outpost in advance. How much money you make is secondary, the key is to occupy a position.

……

this day.

Tang Bao was in the hotel, talking to Horst on the phone across the ocean, discussing the Phoenix Investment Group's entry into London.

But.

Horst seems to be hesitant to expand again so early and enter the London market. In his opinion, after all, since the establishment of Phoenix Investment Group for more than two years, it has been expanding rapidly almost every day, and sometimes he has a feeling that he can't keep up.

No way, the scale has expanded. There are also a lot of fields involved, and it is difficult for him to take care of them all.

Now.

Tang Bao is going to the City of London again. To set up a branch, this can certainly accelerate the pace of internationalization of Phoenix Investment Group.

But there are also hidden dangers, running too fast. There is a danger of falling.

"Boss, it's a good thing to set up an international branch, but you must be cautious. Many companies that have become famous have been held back by improper expansion, dragged down by international business, or even closed down directly because of branches......" Horst reminded after a moment of silence.

"Oh? You mean to say. At this time, Phoenix Investment Group set up a branch in the UK, the timing is wrong? Tang Bao asked in surprise.

"Yes. Boss. The U.S. market is big enough for us to digest for a few years, and we need to settle down and stabilize our territory. ”

"We don't have the energy to look beyond the U.S."

"In addition, London is also one of the international financial cities. The status of the branch set up there will definitely be very important. It may control all the business in Europe in the future, almost on a par with the United States. However, we don't have the right people to do it. ”

"Finally, the establishment of a branch office must also take into account local laws, politics and other issues. Boss, you know, Phoenix Investment Group is an investment company in the financial sector, and not every country will welcome us. Some countries may restrict, guard against us, or even boycott us. In a word. If Phoenix Investment Group wants to set up a branch in London, the attitude of the British government is very important. Of course, there may also be fierce confrontation from their native counterparts in London...... They don't want us to come and snatch their cake. Horst said.

Forehead.

After listening to Horst's analysis, Tang Bao was stunned for a moment. He never thought about it. Just setting up a branch office will be so troublesome.

"Boss, Phoenix Investment Group doesn't have an international department that is good enough to deal with these troubles, and it doesn't even have any experience in international expansion......

"Hmm."

Tang Bao nodded understandingly.

There was a slight pause.

Horst spoke again, "Boss, if you're really in a hurry to enter the European market. It's not impossible, you can try to cooperate with local British companies. We don't seek a controlling position, we just go first, slowly understand and adapt to everything there, and then wait for the opportunity to set up a separate branch. ”

……

After some negotiations, Tang Bao also felt that his wishful thinking of setting up a branch was a bit presumptuous. Comparatively speaking, Horst's proposal is more old-fashioned and steady.

……

Then.

"Knock knock......" There was a knock on the door.

Well?

Tang Bao secretly wondered who was knocking on his door at this point in time. With doubts in his heart, Tang Bao opened the door without hurrying.

"Peter!"

Seeing the person coming, Tang Bao was a little surprised. Since joining the board of directors, Tang Bao left directly. Nor did he have any connection with Peter...... How did he find here?

"Hi, Don. Fortunately, you haven't left yet, otherwise I would have chased me to the United States again. Peter said with a slightly exaggerated smile.

Tang Bao invited Peter in.

The two sat down one after another.

Tang Bao smiled lightly and said, "Say, Peter, what do you have to do with me." Could it be that it's BP Petroleum again? ”

"Oh, no, no, no! Don't worry, don't worry, the stock price of BP Petroleum is stable now, and I believe that after a while, it will return to more than fifty dollars. Remembering that BP's share price is rising, Peter's mood is refreshed.

"And ...... you're here?"

Tang Bao's heart became more and more puzzled, Peter didn't ask him about BP Petroleum Company, so what else was there?

Soon.

Peter solved the confusion in his heart for him, and said with a smile: "That's right, Don, Sir Middleton is very concerned about the situation of BP Petroleum in the United Kingdom. This time, he was very happy to hear that the company had survived the predicament, and specially held a celebration banquet to invite you by name. ”

Sir Middleton?

Tang Bao kept searching for this person in his mind, but he found nothing, and he couldn't figure out who Sir Middleton was.

"Peter, tell me, who is this Sir Middleton, who is a British government official?" Since helping BP stabilize the stock price, Tang Bao can clearly feel that Peter's attitude towards him has changed dramatically, and it can be said that he is very warm and kind to him. So he didn't have any roundabouts and asked directly.

As for why Tang Bao thinks that Sir Middleton is a government official, it is that he knows that most of the people who hold this kind of knighthood are senior officials of the British government, and of course there are some people who have made special contributions to Britain.

"You don't know who Sir Middleton is?" Now it was Peter's turn to be surprised.

"Hmm. I don't know. I haven't been in England, so how can I know who he is, how can this Sir Middleton be famous? Tang Bao said.

“……”

Peter was speechless. Can the British finance minister not be famous, and he will be exposed to the public eye almost every day......

Then.

Peter said, "Don, Sir Middleton is the British Minister of Finance. He was Margaret Thatcher's financial steward......"

"British Minister of Finance!"

Knowing Sir Middleton's identity, Tang Bao couldn't help but be surprised, he thought that this Sir Middleton was just a retired official.

But.

Soon Tang Bao calmed down, and then his face became serious, this British finance minister is not a good stubble. In his memory, this is the protagonist who forced the Kuwait Investment Authority to reduce its stake. At this time, Sir Middleton organized a celebratory banquet and asked to see him by name. The Kuwait Investment Authority holds 25.93% of the shares, while Tang Bao Private and Phoenix Investment Group hold a total of 23.59%, which is not much different.

"Don, Don ......"

Peter called out several times, but Tang Bao didn't have any reaction, and he couldn't help but wonder. It's okay just now, what's going on?

"Don ......"

……

Tang Bao suddenly came back to his senses and smiled at Peter slightly apologetically. "I'm sorry, Peter, Sir Middleton's identity scared me a bit."

"He's a very easy guy to get along with......"

"Peter, do you know why Sir Middleton invited me by name?" Tang Bao asked tentatively, observing Peter's expression at the same time.

"Why? Didn't you just say that this is a celebratory banquet? With your support for BP Oil, Sir Middleton certainly won't forget to invite you. ”

Peter said it for granted, and his expression still did not change at all.

Well.

It seems that Peter should not have known the reason either. Tang Bao secretly said in his heart, in this way, he was also slightly relieved.

"Who are the people at the banquet? Are they all related to BP Oil? ”

"Of course not. Sir Middleton, as the British Minister of Finance, could not have said this to the outside world, even if his banquet was to celebrate the crisis of the British BP oil company. Peter shook his head and explained with a smile.

"Hmm."

Tang Bao nodded, and thought to himself, I'll just say, how can a company's celebration banquet be hosted by the government's finance minister.

"The scale of this banquet is somewhat large, covering major enterprises in the fields of finance and energy, and they are all invited. Well, there will probably be many more government officials...... Oh, and there's a Japanese business delegation in London in the last few days, and they'll be all of them. Finally, the board of directors of BP Petroleum will be in attendance, and the Kuwait Investment Authority will also be represented......"

"A business delegation from Japan?"

Tang Bao's brows furrowed, and he secretly thought, could this be a government diplomatic dinner.

"Yes. Don, you also know that Japan is the richest country right now, and the government needs to attract foreign investment, and it is normal to invite them to dinners. ”

"That's ......"

Thinking about the madness of Japanese capital, it is really normal for the British government to want to attract their investment.

……

Next.

Tang Bao asked many more detailed questions, since he knew that this banquet might be a Hongmen banquet for him, so he naturally had to make more preparations.

"Don, you'll be on time."

Seeing that Tang Bao asked so much, but he didn't give a clear response, Peter asked solemnly.

"Hmm. You also said that Sir Middleton has been named, how can I not give face. When and where? Tang Bao said with a smile. (To be continued) R655