King of Capital

Chapter 54: Sardine Boy Zuckerberg

What Song Anli was thinking in her heart was also the tacit understanding of all the interns without having to say it out loud, so the days passed step by step, moving calmly towards the predetermined outcome.

At the bonfire party during the Tonglu outing, the three girls' eyes were red; Feng Shuo was extremely useless, hugging He Chuan and saying that he would take his good brother to find women after the internship; Stanford repeated his name over and over again, shouting, "My name is He Qinshan, the Qin in Qinba Mountain, an extremely poor area."

He was originally the protagonist in the show's script, a grassroots who turned into a rich second-generation...

After the lyrical and wild speech, he returned to Shanghai, put on a suit and leather shoes, stood on the defense podium, and in the presence of dozens of leaders from all departments of Juntai, he gave a decent speech of thanks.

In the last assessment, Xie Jingxing got the last place, because other interns had grown to varying degrees, but he had not changed at all from beginning to end.

Qi Tian and Stanford received the final offer, and the third place went to Song Anli. The remaining four interns each had their own future and sent their blessings to the results.

Zhao Mengche invited Qi Tian and Stanford to dinner and said that they had to take good care of her good sister in Juntai and must not bully girls like a certain scumbag. It sounded more like she was using someone else's name to vent her regret and resentment for her failure.

The scumbag Xie Jingxing, whom she called, did not attend the dinner, not because he was unkind, but because the latest news came from the other side of the ocean.

The meeting between Mr. Liu and Koum went smoothly. He made a commitment on the spot to a $120 billion merger and acquisition valuation, which was $ billion lower than the initial valuation given internally. Koum said he would consider it carefully or rule out the merger and acquisition option and consider strategic cooperation.

“Why would he change the valuation?”

Late at night, in the office, Xie Jingxing asked with a frown.

"Like you, adapting to circumstances."

Su He placed the coffee next to him and explained, "Mr. Liu judged on the spot that Koum cares more about autonomy than valuation. He wants actual control. After the merger, he still has the final say on WhatsApp."

"So Tencent is willing to give up power?" Xie Jingxing asked thoughtfully.

Su He nodded slightly: "Boss Liu said that he can consider it. It seems that they have really learned their lesson."

It is true that the 3Q war made Tencent change its concept and let it invest in companies freely, but WhatsApp is an instant messaging product, Tencent’s best business, and after spending all its money to complete the acquisition, can it bear not to intervene?

Xie Jingxing analyzed: "We believe it, but Koum may not. The idea of ​​strategic cooperation may be a bad thing."

"Our plan includes the option of turning to investment strategic cooperation if a full acquisition is not possible. In fact, the strategy of cooperating first and then extending the battle line to gradually acquire is less risky and safer. This is also the disagreement that has caused us to argue with Peng Zhijian the most during this period." Su He comforted.

Xie Jingxing couldn't say what emotions he had, he just felt it was difficult to deal with because there was no right or wrong in this disagreement.

Whether from the perspective of the risk to the US government or the size of the transaction funds, gradual mergers and acquisitions are better than achieving success in one fell swoop. It is not so easy for a business empire with a market value of HK$700 billion to go all in at every turn.

But the problem is that time waits for no one. As long as WhatsApp is not chewed up and swallowed, there will be huge variables. Let alone other things, in two years, WhatsApp's valuation will skyrocket, and Tencent will have to rely on Pony Ma to sell his kidney to raise money for the acquisition.

"Let's arrange the itinerary. We still have to go to the United States to talk to Jim Goetz." Xie Jingxing suppressed his thoughts and made a decision.

Su He unconsciously raised the corners of his mouth and raised his chin: "I called you here to discuss this matter. A low valuation and high autonomy are in the interests of Koum, but not in the interests of Goz. We must appease him."

"Then you are really smart." Xie Jingxing took a sip of coffee.

Su He immediately regretted not putting some rat poison in the coffee. He restrained his expression and lowered his voice: "Let the people you arranged find out the situation. No matter how Kum considers such a big business, he will most likely ask a third-party consulting company for advice."

"It's useless. You don't understand the morality of Wall Street. Although they don't talk about credibility, they are absolutely loyal to the US dollar."

Xie Jingxing glanced at her, thinking that this woman had a strong learning ability. She had disliked him for being mean a few days ago, but now she knew how to extract information from third-party consulting agencies.

"While Kum is considering the next step, we must pay attention to confidentiality and absolutely cannot leak any information!" he emphasized in a serious tone.

This project was originally a Tencent-Juntai collaboration, and any leak would be a huge problem, and no one would be held accountable. And judging from Koum's desire for actual control, he is an extremely strong person, and such founders often particularly hate the acquirer to mess with things.

Su He knew the importance of this, and promised murderously: "Except you, me, Peng Zhijian, and Mr. Liu, all the insiders from both teams are in the holiday villa in Taihu Lake. When we go out, three people will go together, and the power and Internet will be cut off at regular intervals. Shen Xin will follow me from the moment he joins the company, so there will be no problem."

"...Yan Wenhua won't have any problems either." Xie Jingxing felt that it was a bit outrageous.

It was not easy for Yan Wenhua to earn five million, and the part of the work he was responsible for could not be monitored by anyone.

He then asked, "The leader of the Tencent team is Yang Danning, right? Isn't what you are doing a bit..."

"He's a bit unlucky. A few days ago, he was dishonest and insisted on bringing people out for foot washing and massage. He was caught during the inspection and I stepped in to help him settle it. He was anxious to avoid the limelight and is now behaving himself." Su He said calmly with his arms folded.

Xie Jing Xing was speechless, this woman was learning on the spot and her moves were quite shady.

"Oh!"

Suddenly there was a crash outside the office. Song Anli's face was flushed and she smelled of alcohol. She grinned stupidly and greeted, "Boss Su... I came to recognize the place. Are you still working overtime?"

The recording studio built specifically for shooting variety shows was dismantled, and everyone moved back to their normal offices to work.

Song Anli, who had just signed the contract and completed the entry procedures today, was in high spirits after the dinner. She thought about coming to the office late at night to familiarize herself with the office, take a few beautiful photos at her workstation and send them to her family to share her joy. "You, when did you come?" Su He asked expressionlessly.

Song Anli felt something was wrong and stammered, "I just came in and thought someone forgot to turn off the lights. I didn't know it was you."

"Why don't you turn on the light?" Su He asked.

Song Anli lowered her head in embarrassment: "I can't find where the light is."

"You've come just in time. Come stay at my house tonight. I have some work for you. Is that convenient?"

Su He didn't say the second half of the sentence: If it's inconvenient for you, just die.

"Actually, it was pretty miserable for me to meet you."

Xie Jingxing felt a headache, and said something to Song Anli who was still confused about the situation, then ran away.

Su He shouted at his back: "Where are you going?"

"Go back to the dormitory to get her luggage. This situation can only last for a month at most. If it goes on for too long, there will be big problems."

Xie Jingxing was in a heavy mood, and he had to find a way to get Kum to make a decision as soon as possible.

…………

WhatsApp headquarters in Mountain View, USA.

The sixteen-hour time difference means that Kum and Goz don't have to work overtime late at night, and they can have their argument in the afternoon when the sun is gentle and the breeze is not dry.

“Price is important, but I am more in control than money.”

Koum looked a little excited and supported himself on the table with both hands: "This is my original intention for creating WhatsApp. You know, I hate trouble just as I hate advertisements. They are not pure enough for a company! If WhatsApp is not under my control, I would rather it does not exist!"

"Yang, this is just your first meeting, and you still have a lot to communicate. You can't define everything as trouble. Tencent hopes to give you actual control, right? Then the focus of the discussion should be the merger itself, not shallow strategic cooperation."

Goz gestured with his hand to indicate that he should relax and calm down.

Koum was silent for a moment and took a deep breath. “No, Jim, I followed your instructions to understand the so-called wind direction and window period. You greatly underestimated the difficulty of mergers and acquisitions. We will be deeply mired in various inquiries and investigations, and then watch our competitors surpass us.”

"I saw the risk that WhatsApp would get out of my control in this deal and rush off in an unknown direction like a wild horse, which I could not accept."

Gotz rested his hand on his forehead and said, "Who told you that? Those investment banks on Wall Street or consulting firms like McKinsey? I knew you should have talked to me first if you had any questions. It is a common tactic they use to deliberately exaggerate the difficulty of a project and ask for high compensation from clients. I should have reminded you earlier."

"Jim, we know each other well, of that there is no doubt, and you should know that I have the intelligence to distinguish between fact and exaggeration."

Koum stared into his eyes and said, "Don't mention the merger with Tencent anymore. I just think you are temporarily dazzled by the so-called window period and the huge market of 14 billion. I know you are doing this for the good of WhatsApp, so I will seriously consider strategic cooperation with Tencent."

The price offered by Tencent just met his lowest psychological expectations, as well as his actual control, which he could not judge whether he could trust. In return, he would have to bear huge risks that could cause the company to lose control.

In comparison, he believes more in Zuckerberg's promise. Of course, the two sides have not yet discussed the merger and acquisition.

And in terms of financial resources, the latter is obviously not weaker than Tencent.

The trade-offs in this case are simple: Tencent represents the Asian market and technology, while Zuckerberg represents trust and transaction certainty. Low transaction risk means that the merger and acquisition will not cause WhatsApp to escape his control.

During this process, he also has the possibility of choosing to enter into strategic cooperation with Tencent, and may not be unable to obtain support from the Asian market and technical level.

As for Zuckerberg, let him wait for now. WhatsApp has not reached its growth bottleneck yet. Koum is not in a hurry for mergers and acquisitions. After the strategic cooperation with Tencent, WhatsApp's valuation will take another leap.

No matter who you are trading with, WhatsApp is the active party!
“OK, in fact, I also think that the valuation offer given by Tencent is very insincere, but I still have to remind you that the negotiation process with Tencent itself helps to increase WhatsApp’s valuation.”

Goz said helplessly, then turned and left.

shit!

How could a senior investor who has been in the industry for more than a decade be fooled by a few words from a kid? Koum is too naive. He just wants to hook Zuckerberg while cooperating strategically with Tencent to raise the valuation.

He is different. He treats Tencent as a catfish. Damn the transaction risks. As long as WhatsApp shows any sign of turning to the catfish, poor sardine boy Zuckerberg will have to swim desperately and automatically raise the price.

This kind of game can maximize profits. Koum cares too much about control. This certainly makes WhatsApp's development steady enough, but as a venture capitalist, is he still a venture capitalist if he doesn't take some risks?

The yellow-skinned catfish boy is also very bored. 120 billion is a price that does not suit him or Sequoia's interests.

Sequoia and WhatsApp do not agree on this.

(End of this chapter)