Ch. 1771..1780
Life at the Top Chapter 1771
JW Foundation’s fund pool temporarily locked all transactions when the lockdown order took effect. Therefore some successful but unsettled orders were carried out in the first minute of opening, and JW suffered an instant loss of 15 billion US Dollars.
“In the fifth minute of the opening, Quantum Fund’s attacks on JW Foundation began increasing by the second and JW Foundation seemed helpless in the face of such a fierce attack. After giving up a lot of positions, the losses began to expand.
“We predict that JW Foundation might want to trade space for time and start a tug of war with Quantum Fund at a price that is more conducive to JW Foundation’s defense.
“However, they did not.”
In Swallow Capital, the atmosphere in the central bank’s highest-level meeting room was silent.
Top leaders and researchers from relevant departments of the central bank were staring at the real-time transaction data and listening to the explanation of the chief financial research expert of the central bank.
“At present, JW Foundation’s fund pool has lost more than 22 billion US Dollars.”
The chief expert had a serious expression and continued, “If losses continue at this rate and JW Foundation does not take any effective countermeasures, the market will lose confidence in JW Foundation.
“At that time, the avalanche of losses will
form, and Quantum Fund will be able to completely liquidate all of JW Foundation’s funds within half a trading day.”
Tony from the SBS Bank was also in the conference room, but due to his rank, he could only sit at the end near the door.
At this moment, he summoned the courage to say, “I noticed that JW Foundation took the initiative to give up some positions, but a certain amount of funds disappeared from this. Can I see
where that amount went?”
The chief expert cast an appreciative look
at him.
After all, even the most experienced professional would lose track of certain information in the dense stream of data, but Tony caught it, which was very remarkable.
“I also noticed the funds. The total amount is 50 billion US Dollars, but the destination is unknown. After all, we can’t access JW Foundation’s backend data. Therefore, until the funds are reinvested, we won’t know where they went and what happened to them.”
At that moment, at the conference table, a man with white hair on his temples spoke slowly, “What impact has the current loss of JW Foundation had on the domestic A share market?”
The chief expert sighed and said, “The stock trading market is currently closed, but futures trading is continuing. From the futures market, it can be seen that the current market confidence is generally sluggish, especially with JW Foundation’s
loss. Large sums of money are being withdrawn from the trading market at this time.
“This means that the market is worried that after the opening of the market tomorrow, JW Foundation’s defeat will lead Quantum Fund to start attacking the domestic A-share market.
“From our current analysis, if JW
Foundation continues to lose money, the -share market may plunge tomorrow.
“The magnitude of the jump is expected t o exceed 300 points.”
As soon as he said this, there was the sound of sharp inhales in the conference room.
One had to know that the current A-share inventory was only at 2,100 points. A drop of 300 points meant that the entire A share market would have fallen by more than one-seventh of its market value.
This was paramount to a stock market
crash.
Furthermore, this kind of situation was
absolutely forbidden in a country that
demanded both political and economic stability.
It would even affect the country’s economic growth this year, which in turn would influence the country’s major policies.
“Mr. Jenkins, do you want to contact Jasper?”
Someone asked in a low voice.
The man who was not burly, but was as calm as a mountain, shook his head and answered, “It’s not easy to do economic work. Currently, Jasper is under more pressure than us. Since we have already chosen him, we should at least give him the most basic trust.
“In other words, everything has just begun. Jasper could previously break through all difficulties and make everything that we deemed impossible become possible. So why won’t it happen this time?”
“Let’s just wait. I believe he will do something remarkable.”.
His words seemed to be the final decision, and no one in the meeting room challenged him.
At this moment, far away in Harbor City.
Zachary canceled all his appointments
and sat in the office.
“Mr. Law, the mainland has begun to act.”
Upon hearing the report from his subordinates, Zachary hung up the phone call with Henry and said, “I see. We will follow. Sell short, sell short with all our strength, and be sure not to give the enemy any time to react.”
The subordinate nodded solemnly and
answered, “Understood.” At this moment, Zachary picked up the
phone and called the other families except for Half-the-Harbor Langdon.
“Everyone, the time has come, let’s do it.”
With one word, Harbor City’s capital
began surging. It turned into a long dragon, crossed the vast ocean, and headed for the economic empire of the
United States.
The United States subprime loan fund market.
The shorting of 50 billion US Dollars made the entire market suddenly derail like a train that was originally moving smoothly without any warning. Then, the situation suddenly took a turn for the worse.
Meanwhile, the short-selling of more than 100 billion US Dollars from Harbor City that followed almost immediately was the equivalent of grabbing the entire train and throwing it off the cliff.
What did it mean to suffer a drastic decline?
This was it.
Quantum Fund relied on the support of all of entire Wall Street Capital to frantically attack the JW Foundation’s fund pool in the securities market.
In the subprime market that no one was paying attention to at this time, Jasper’s ambush combined with Harbor City funds to brutally trample on the backbone of the United States economy in the same brutal
fashion.
Before it collapsed, no one thought that a subprime market would actually be the backbone of the United States economy.
At this moment, countless fund managers in the subprime market were summoned t o their computers by emergency calls. They looked at the avalanche of the market, and they were so scared they dropped the coffee in their hands one by one.
The well-dressed managers who went in and out of high-end office buildings daily looked like bereaved dogs at this moment. They were wailing like defeated dogs in the face of this landslide.
Just when investors in this market were in a panic, something was happening in North America.
Alan walked out of the State Capitol.
When he was being interviewed, he calmly said, “Our economic observers noticed that the statewide housing credit mortgage and loan have seriously exceeded the limit of economic balance
lever, which is a major hidden danger to
the statewide economy.
“Hence, we have just passed a bill which will instruct the Bureau of Business Investigation and the Banking Regulatory Department to review the housing credit loans of all banks in the state to prevent greedy businessmen from approving loans for profit. As things stand, they will even approve a dog’s loan application just to make a quick buck.”
The same situation occurred almost simultaneously in the six North American states that the Maynards had power over.
The storm had formed!
Life at the Top Chapter 1772
The most sensitive one to the formation o f the storm was Quantum Fund, which stood on the opposite side of JW
Foundation.
“Something’s wrong!”
Rogers, who had fought against Jasper too many times, suddenly yelled. He frightened Soros, who was busy discussing strategy with the team leader.
“Damn it, Rogers, you know I have high blood pressure and heart disease. Do you want to kill me?”
Since the beginning of the battle had gone smoothly, Soros was in a pretty good mood, save for being startled just now.
Hence, his tone was not particularly harsh.
Rogers walked quickly to Soros, bowed his
head, and did something on the computer. He said, “Look!
JW Foundation has started to withdraw their funds. Furthermore, with the lifting of offshore funding restrictions, a large number of funds from Harbor City are now flowing into the subprime market.”
While speaking, Rogers opened the subprime loan market and pointed at the shocking declining trendline on it, and said, “I was wondering why Jasper was not increasing the amount but instead withdrawing his funds. Do you understand why now?”
Soros’ eyes widened. At this moment, he felt a cold chill run through his body. This coldness made goosebumps form all over his body.
“That lunatic! That lunatic is going to short the entire United States subprime loan market!”
Seeing that Soros was finally reacting, Rogers said through gritted teeth, “Yes, Jasper didn’t plan to fight us in the stock market from the beginning. He allowed us to eat away at his funds in the stock market and instead used his remaining strength to invest in the subprime market.”
As he said that, Rogers lowered his voice. His blue eyes stared at ros with panic, and he continued coldly, “You know how many people in the United States are
burdened with loans. Once this market collapses, we will be buried next to those people along with half of Wall Street.”
Soros’ pupils instantly shrank to the size o
f a pinhead.
The huge shock and fear that was taking
over his body caused him to tremble.
At this moment, he only felt a pain in his
chest, and he could not even breathe.
Soros supported himself with one hand o In the computer desk while his other hand clutched his chest. He closed his eyes tightly and heard Rogers’ anxious voice.
“Soros, what’s the matter with you? Open your eyes and look at me. You must not collapse at this time!”
Soros opened his eyes with great
difficulty. He gritted his teeth and said, ” This small thing can’t take me down.”
In just over ten seconds, this all-powerful business tycoon had found a way to deal with this.
“Almost all of the investment banks and capital companies in Wall Street have
participated in subprime market transactions, of which Layman Investment Bank has the largest share. I must consult with them immediately on this matter.
“I’ll leave this to you, Rogers.”
Rogers frowned and asked, “What do you need me to do?”
Soros snapped fiercely, “Stop Jasper in the securities market. Stop him from continuing to reallocate funds. In addition, split off 60% of our funds and invest them in the subprime market. Stabilize the market first, don’t let it collapse.”
“Soros, you are crazy.”
Rogers said, “Those credit products in the subprime market are all rubbish. If we invest in it and take over ownership of them, we will be the first to die if the market collapses.”
“Most of these funds come from Wall Street investment banks and capital companies, while even the central bank’s loans are guaranteed by them. This is
tantamount to using their own money to save their lives. We have no choice.”
After Soros finished speaking, he grabbed Rogers hand tightly and said, “At the very least, we can’t be that sinner.”
Rogers took a deep breath. Then, he nodded heavily and said, “I promise you, the situation will not worsen until you come back.”
Just as Soros was about to leave, news broke that six states in North America initiated the review of domestic housing credit loans at the same time.
When he heard the news, Soros’ face turned pale.
“Those damned Maynards…
“They’re colluding with Jasper!
“It seems that the previous bill in Congress was also promoted and passed b y the Maynards. Apart from them, no one would have the same interests and goals a s Jasper. These bloody politicians… those damned Somerland descents, they want t o ruin the great United States!”
While the world’s eyes were all fixed on the United States securities market, in the deeper subprime market of the United States, the first earth-shattering roar of thunder was heard.
This thunderbolt directly awoke everyone.
It turned out that modern economics and finance had never been limited to just the stock and securities market.
The real high-end gameplay was to launch a full-scale attack from the various fields of the financial market.
Under this pressure, the United States, which had always been extremely powerful in people’s minds, exposed its weaknesses.
It was like a gorgeously dressed widow, who was also the goddess in the dreams o f all men, displaying her hairy legs after lifting her dress.
This shocked everyone, making them feel disbelief, but at the same time, also disgusted them.
A few hundred billion dollars had caused the United States’ subprime credit market
to collapse.
The speed of this crash was beyond everyone’s imagination.
Beneath the seemingly calm United
States, the pillar of the economy was
crumbling.
At this moment, in the Nauritus City Command Center in Somerland.
“The United States subprime market as a whole has fallen by more than 17%, and the downward trend is now evident. We estimate that it will drop to at least 25% 0 f its initial market value before the intervention of Wall Street capital or the
United States government.”
Jake suppressed his excitement and reported, “The funds we have invested have now increased by 30%. Although the gap compared with the loss in the securities market is still huge, in terms of the immediate results, we can already announce that the goal we formulated in the first phase has been achieved successfully.”
Following Jake’s statement, a sigh of relief was heard across the entire
command room.
Everyone was in high spirits. The loss at the beginning made them a little worried, but now, everything turned out to be worth it.
Jasper looked more relaxed too.
“Good. Great work, everyone. Ask the canteen to make some supper and send it over.”
Jasper clapped his hands and turned to look at everyone in the room. He said, ” Even though we had a good start, the situation still doesn’t look optimistic.
“You have to know that the real opponent of our battle is not the market. Rather, it’s Wall Street and even the United States government. Right now, what we have to d o is get ready to endure Wall Street’s counterattack that is bound to happen at any moment.”
Life at the Top Chapter 1773
“Hence, for the moment, my idea is to continue to increase our firepower. I must ignite the panic in the market before the United States government or Wall Street rescues it. I want to completely uncover the weakest and most rotten pillar lying under the United States economic system.”
After Jasper finished speaking, the little prince nodded slightly and said, “I think w e can do me proper guidance on the public opinion. After all, ordinary people won’t understand financial terms and figures that initially appear too professional.
“So, we must use the simplest and most straightforward explanation to have them understand that the house they bought with the loan may really be worthless.”
Jasper chuckled and said, “This proposal i s very good. I have made the relevant arrangements. However, the coverage of public opinion can’t just rely on me. Thus, everyone, you can mobilize the resources o n hand now.”
The little prince and others looked at each other and smiled. Then, they said, “We will do our best.”
While Jasper and his partners gathered in the command room to discuss the next course of action, inside the office of the chair of the Federal Reserve in Washington, the United States.
The spacious office had impressive retro decorations. The most conspicuous item was the iconic Stars and Stripes flag and the logo of the Federal Reserve.
Standing in front of the clear window, Greenspaner’s deep eyes were full of solemnity.
“This torrential rain came too fast.”
Looking up at the gloomy sky, Greenspaner spoke slowly.
The vice-chair, Janet came forward to stand behind Greenspaner. She said, “The weather forecast states that this huge rainstorm will last for several days. This i s not good news for many people.”
“Yes, I originally planned to go camping this weekend with my family, but it seems
that I am going to have to cancel this
plan.”
Janet replied worriedly, “Sir, I am worried
that many people will not be able to
survive under this heavy rain.”
“Jasper exposed our weakness.”
There was a sudden fire in Greenspaner’s eyes, and he said in a deep voice, “I have told those idiots in Washington that the current economic policy will be a heavy burden on the nation and has many hidden dangers, but those damned idiots wouldn’t look at the long-term future at all.
“For them, it’d be fine as long as the United States remains great, the economy continues thriving, and the country remains the core of global politics, military, and economics during their tenure.
“But sooner or later, the United States will be finished under this short-sighted
leadership.” Greenspaner turned to look at Janet as he
continued in a deep voice, “If this
problem is not handled well, the
skyscrapers of the United States economic
system will also collapse.”
Janet felt her scalp tingling.
Greenspaner was the founder of the hegemony of the US Dollar, and his status in national and global economic circles was unparalleled. Therefore, in Janet’s mind, Greenspaner was almost synonymous with invincibility.
Yet, at this time, the idol in her heart had said such pessimistic words, to the point that Janet could not accept it.
“Sir, the video conference with Mr. Hamilton, Soros, and the presidents of the various investment banks like Layman and Mayland will begin soon. I don’t think a businessman from Somerland will be able to crash the United States’ economy.”
Greenspaner shook his head and said, ” You still don’t understand. Indeed, Jasper cannot crash the United States economy. Even the Somerland government won’t be able to do this, let alone Jasper. No entity i n the world can do so, except for one
country.
“And that is the United States itself.
“This is the problem within the United
States economic system itself. Jasper just
exposed this issue in advance.
“The root cause of the subprime mortgage crisis is that the United States has a large quantity of over-issued hot money rolling into the market. To maintain economic growth and fill the appetite of greedy businessmen, everyone in the United States is buying houses with loans. After which, they continue to buy more houses while taking up even more loans…”
Life at the Top Chapter 1774
“It’s like dominoes. Once one of the dominoes falls, a series of chain reactions will cause the entire building to collapse.
“Once Jasper continues to short-sell the subprime mortgage market, subprime loan products will become worthless and those subprime loan companies that borrow from the bank will face pressure t o repay their principal and interest amounts.
“The collapse of loan products will directly affect the evaluation of housing credit by banks and subprime loan companies.
“Once its value drops, housing prices will collapse. Once housing prices collapse, people will find that the market value of the house they bought is far less than the loan they need to repay to the bank, so a massive wave of supply cuts will follow.
“When large-scale defaulting breaks out, banks and subprime loan companies will not be able to recover the principal and interest lent out, which will lead to the continued depreciation of subprime loan products.
“The more it depreciates, the less people will buy them. The lesser people buy them, the more it will depreciate.
“This is an endless cycle.”
Greenspaner’s tone became more serious, He walked to the door of the office and said, “I must go to Washington immediately. You can participate in the video conference in my place.”
Janet hurriedly asked, “But if they ask for help, what should I say?”
“Let them find a way to save themselves. Before getting authorization from Washington, neither I nor Hamilton can help them. Capital matters should be solved with capital.”
After Greenspaner said that, he left the
office. Janet sighed helplessly and turned her
head to look at the place where Greenspaner stood by the window before and saw that the rain had started pouring outside the window.
This heavy rain had already begun.
Meanwhile, at this moment, Jasper, had just eaten supper and was about to take a short break during the half-hour of settlement of transactions in the subprime market when he welcomed some unexpected guests.
From the command room, Jasper saw two tall white men waiting in the reception area.
“Hello, Mr. Laine, I am the president of Forbes Magazine in the Terra region, Wellington.”
The man in the lead stood up politely and gave some photos to Jasper with a smile o n his face.
Jasper took the photos with a smile and glanced at Wellington with a meaningful look in his eyes.
In his last life and even after he was reincarnated into this life, Jasper often imagined when he would be included on the Forbes Richest List.
Now, this opportunity had really come, and the president of the Terra region had personally come to his door. However, at
this point, Jasper, who has broadened his horizons and insights many times over, now found this event rather dull.
“Mr. Laine, this year’s global richest list will soon be updated. After our investigation and calculations, you are already the richest man in Somerland with a net worth of 46.7 billion US Dollars and you are ranked number nine in the global richest list.”
Wellington spoke directly.
Jasper laughed and said, “I never counted my assets, yet you’ve calculated it so clearly?”
Wellington said helplessly, “Because JW
Company is not listed, we cannot estimate
your exact value.
“But what is certain is that once you let J W Company become a listed company, your vaue will skyrocket at least 10 times over, which is very likely to make you the first ever world’s richest man from Somerland.”
Raising his hand to stop Wellington,
Jasper put up two fingers and said, “I’ll give you 2 million. Get me out of this list o f murderers.”
Life at the Top Chapter 1775
To the current Jasper, the so-called Forbes Richest List was actually a shining slaughter list.
Although he was unlikely to be slaughtered based on his current relationshi with the government, there was also nothing illegal about JW’s business.
The key point was that Jasper would start an international and global business in the future.
Although in some respects, the title of the richest man in Somerland could make it easier for him to deal with foreigners, in the eyes of foreign officials, this title would more likely bring him unnecessary trouble.
Jasper no longer needed to rely on the richest list to get fame anymore.
In the eyes of those who understood it, this richest list was just a sham.
For example, how much money did Old
Master Law have?
Jasper did not know, but Anna once revealed that the current top ten figures o In the domestic richest list combined would not even be qualified to fight their family.
However, had Old Master Law ever been
considered the so-called richest man?
The richest list was too deceitful.
You would be lying to yourself if you
believed that thing.
The most important factor was that the current JW was high-profile enough, and Jasper did not want to face extra problems at this critical moment.
Facing Jasper’s request, Wellington and his assistant glanced at each other. They wore an expression that showed that they had expected this.
People would spend money to get on other lists, but others were spending money to b e included on this richest list, especially when it came to Somerland’s domestic
list.
With a dry cough, Wellington said, “Mr. Laine, anyone with a discerning eye can actually tell that with JW’s current status and strength, it is unrealistic for you to be included on the rich list.”
“You can just say that it’s unknown and don’t give me a ranking. It’s not like you haven’t done this kind of thing in the past.”
Jasper was annoyed with these two
people. Hence, he said directly, “I’m
going to add another 1 million. You know,
I’m very busy now.”
Wellington suddenly showed a satisfied smile on his face. Then, he got up and said, “Since Mr. Laine really doesn’t want to be on the list, then we will definitely respect Mr. Laine’s wishes.”
“Good.”
Jasper got up and shook hands with Wellington. He said, “Send someone over during work hours tomorrow and I will tell my subordinates about this.”
“Very well, Mr. Laine.”
When Wellington knew it was time to leave, he turned around as if suddenly remembering something. He turned to Jasper and said, “Mr. Laine, there is one more thing.”
Jasper narrowed his eyes slightly and said, “Mr. Wellington, 3 million is already my limit. I will not pay another penny.”
Wellington hurriedly waved his hand and said, “I didn’t mean that. The editor-in chief of Time Magazine asked me to consult you on whether you have time for an interview?
“Time Magazine hasn’t yet decided the cover for their Person of the Year.”
These words made Jasper raise his eyebrows.
Time Magazine and Forbes Magazine
were not the same things at all.
From 1927 to the present, all the people who had been on the cover of Time Magazine had a major influence. world, for better or worse. the
In history, only four people of Somerland descent had ever been on the cover of this
magazine.
The first two were the Jacobson couple, which was understandable.
The next one was a great man who reformed and opened the country to the outside world, and he had been elected twice.
The last one was a great person in the
medical research field from Nawait. He
came out with an important medical
procedure to treat AIDS.
If Jasper could become the Person of the Year, then he would be the first man in history from Somerland who got into the magazine as a businessman.
This was a good thing for both Jasper himself and Somerland, as it would boost national confidence.
“I’ll think about it, but I don’t have time now.”
After some consideration, Jasper gave a reply.
Life at the Top Chapter 1776
“I understand. There’s still about half a month left before the selection. I will give your contact to Editor Swift, and she will contact you personally,” Wellington said.
“Okay.”
After sending away Wellington and the other man, Jasper put the matter aside and returned to the command center.
“Mr. Laine.”
Jake greeted Jasper immediately after seeing Jasper.
“Look at this.”
Jasper quickly browsed through the information in Jake’s hands after he took i t.
“This is the news that the data collection team has just received. Just now, Layman and Mayland Investment Bank both issued announcements. They’re expressing their optimism about the United States subprime loan market and state that they will increase investment in this market at this time.
“The subprime loan market has warmed u p again after being influenced by this news.
“Although trading is still unavailable since we’re in the settlement period, early analysis shows that after trading resumes, the downward trend of the market will slow down.”
Jasper nodded and said, “These United States scoundrels truly are the ancestors o f capitalists. Their reaction speed is indeed fast enough.
“Leave them. This is something they would have inevitably done. Now that they have regained some of the market confidence, we should up our efforts to get rid of it.
“Add 50 billion US Dollars and continue to sell short. I want to see the market price o f subprime credit products drop by at least 3 points as soon as I resume trading.”
“Roger that.” Jake nodded heavily and turned back to prepare.
Back in the command room, it was
already late, so the little prince and the
rest had already gone back to rest.
Meanwhile, Henry was on the phone with
Jill.
When Jasper came back, Henry quickly found an excuse to hang up the phone.
“It’s so late. Does Jill not need to rest?” Jasper asked curiously.
“She is competing abroad and it’s noon.
over there, so she is eating her lunch.”
Henry yawned, got up, and said, “I can’t stand it anymore. I have to go back to sleep.”
“Have you heard from Kayden and his father recently?” Jasper asked.
“Those two?”
When they got to this topic, Henry was immediately wide awake. He said with a sneer, “They are enjoying a good life now. I heard that they have bought a large number of assets in the United States and the United Kingdom. They are seriously going to start in the construction and development industries abroad.”
“I heard that you gave Kayden a mild concussion when you punched him back i n Harbor City,” Jasper said with a laugh.
Henry was suddenly thrilled. He said, “I still regret not performing well at the time. If I get another chance, I’ll make sure he gets carried out in a stretcher.
“When will you be taking action against those two? They’re living their best life now and I’m not happy about that,” Henry said grimly.
“Yes, of course we’ll be taking action against them.”
Jasper turned his head and looked at Conrad, who was still in the room. He asked with a smile, “Connie, why don’t you take charge of this?”
Conrad frowned and said, “Don’t call me
Connie. It doesn’t sound nice.”
“Alright, Connie.”
Conrad sighed. How could he lose to this kind of person?
He began to wonder if his surrendering to Jasper was really a smart decision.
“What do you want me to do?”
Jasper said, “The father and son duo
made their fortunes in telecommunications and real estate. The telecommunications industry has too many barriers to entry and they will not b e able to squeeze themselves in for a while. Moreover, once the subprime mortgage crisis breaks out in the United States, real estate will be very cheap. I think they will view this is a great opportunity to pick up some goodies.
“I will give you both resources and money. The opportunities are also readily available. Let’s dig a hole and make them jump inside voluntarily.”
Jasper pointed to Henry and said with a smile, “Your task is to carry the shovel and wait. After they jump in, bury them alive.”
Life at the Top Chapter 1777
One would not be noble if they did not avenge animosity.
Jasper did not care whether it was noble o r not, but the moment it was clear that Kayden and his father had betrayed him, Jasper already started thinking about revenge.
Jasper could not wait for even a second more to seek revenge. When he thought about how the people who framed him were living their best lives, Jasper could not even eat or think straight.
“You can’t rush this matter even if you want to.”
Jasper rubbed his chin, narrowed his eyes, and said, “The J. Langdon father and son, especially the old one, is a fox who is cautious and savage. The combination of these two personalities makes it easy for him to lie dormant and wait. Yet, the second he moves, he will definitely go all out.”
“Hence, the pit must be dug deep and the disguise must be good enough. It is best to let him take the initiative to come to us. ۱۱
When he was talking about this, Jasper looked at Conrad and Henry with a grin. You two are the most suitable for this.”
Conrad and Henry glanced at each other,
waiting for Jasper to continue.
“Connie will be hiding in the dark, while Henry, will stand under the light. You’ll wait for me to prepare the bait, and then you’ll naturally know what to do.”
“I still don’t understand,” Henry said with a straight face.
Jasper said a lot of things, but he still did not understand it. Originally, he wondered if there was something wrong with what Jasper said, but Conrad seemed to understand it, which made Young Master Law very unhappy.
Was there a problem with his comprehension skills?
“So, what is our target ?” Conrad asked the question he had in mind.
Jasper was delighted when he heard Conrad’s question. He said to Henry, Look, even he understands.”
“Layman.”
Before Henry, whose face was dark, could answer, Jasper gave Conrad the answer.
Surprise flashed across Conrad’s face.
“Layman is one of the Big Four banks, and its market value is worth hundreds of billions of US Dollars…”
“At least half of its hundreds of billions of US Dollars is invested in the subprime market.”
Jasper interrupted Conrad’s sentence and said.
In his previous life, during the subprime mortgage crisis, the first and largest company to collapse was Layman Investment Bank.
At that time, the subprime mortgage crisis was at its worst, and the Federal Reserve and the finance department had t o rescue the market.
The way they rescued the market was simple and straightforward, and that was to o give out money.
They injected capital into all the banks and credit companies that were on the verge of failure so that they could temporarily tide over this difficulty.
The problem was that the scale of Layman Investment’s debt was too large. Whether i t was the Federal Reserve Bank or the finance department, their money could not be fabricated out of thin air.
Of course, the power of printing the US Dollars was in the hands of the Federal Reserve, but the very reason for the subprime mortgage crisis in the first place was that the Federal Reserve had issued too many US Dollars for many years, resulting in an excess supply of US Dollars in the market.
Therefore, how could the Federal Reserve or the entire United States government issue hundreds of billions of dollars again to rescue Layman Investment?
With that, Layman Investment went
bankrupt.
Under this global uproar, everyone had clearly seen the nature of the United States fiscal weakness.
Hence, the United States’ economic policy became more and more unrestrained later on, and with the global currency hegemony settled by the US Dollar, it became completely shameless.
This was also one of the main reasons why Somer Dollars and the Euro had gradually become more accepted worldwide.
Everyone had seen through the tricks of these scoundrels from the United States, and they would only pay for them when they had no choice. However, if there was another choice, they would not hesitate to use it; As such, they would use Somer Dollars and Euros to fight the US Dollar.
These things, at least for now, had nothing to do with Jasper. He only needed to know that Layman would go bankrupt.
“If Layman becomes a victim that must b e sacrificed in this subprime mortgage crisis, then when it goes bankrupt, it will become a fallen elephant.
“Even if it is an elephant that was starved to death, the meat left on its bone will be enough for greedy people like Kayden and his father to lunge after.
“What’s more, they are optimistic about the real estate industry. In the eyes of this father and son duo, if they take over Layman, Layman’s subprime loan products that are currently worth hundreds of billions of dollars represent a source of wealth that will eventually return to them.
“You must know that this is the United States, and they are the most powerful country in the world after all. A financial crisis will cause their economy to suffer heavy losses, but it is not enough to tear down an entire economic empire. The industry will still be there, but it will become worthless.
“As long as the United States ranks first i n the world, the assets sold within it will b e deemed as good.”
What Jasper said at this time was not groundless. In fact, it would become the investment ideology that Half-the
Harbor Langdon would follow later on.
It was just that in the previous life, the subprime mortgage crisis broke out in 2008, during the peak of Half-the-Harbor Langdon’s domestic investment.
Taking into account the domestic sentiment and the political situation of the United States at that time, Half-the Harbor Langdon finally transferred his wealth to the United Kingdom.
This was what made the thing in 2018 take place. Half-the-Harbor Langdon made a lot of money in Somerland and then sold his assets on a large scale to divest. After that, he invested all the money earned from the people in the country into the United Kingdom.
From a business standpoint, what Half the-Harbor Langdon did was right.
However, businessmen also had nationalities. The practice of abandoning one’s benefactor upon achieving one’s goal and fleeing after earning a profit disappointed too many people in Somerland.
“Also, what if there is news that the Laws are interested in Layman?”
Jasper’s words made Conrad and Henry
thoroughly understand his plan.
“How relentless!”
Henry gave Jasper a thumbs up. He was
looking excited and expectant.
Jasper laughed and said, “Then you two should start preparing for this matter. If I defeat Layman, you can follow up. If we manage to take away half the lifeblood of Half-the-Harbor Langdon this time, I think he’ll no longer be worthy of his namesake.”
Henry said gleefully, “I like it. Don’t worry, I will definitely do this kind of shady business for you.”
“I will draw up a plan for you later.”
Conrad thought for a while. This was his first mission after he joined JW, and the goal was to destroy Half-the-Harbor Langdon. This made him a little excited.
For someone like Conrad, it would be a waste of talent to have him sit in the
office to handle official duties.
Therefore, since the very start, Jasper planned to use Conrad and get him. involved in a fair share of his own affairs a s much as possible. There were many things that the company’s top management was not suited to do, but which Conrad was an excellent candidate for.
Whether it was wit or bravery, Conrad was definitely no worse than anyone else Jasper had ever contacted.
“Yes, I will provide you with whatever you need. I only ask that the final result meet my expectations.”
When Jasper finished speaking, Jake came in.
“The settlement is over and transaction has resumed.”
Jasper suddenly turned around and said, ” Project the data onto the screen and let’s look at Layman and the Quantum Fund’s actions.”
Life at the Top Chapter 1778
The big screen flashed and the image. projected flickered. Soon, the real-time data of the market reappeared on the screen.
At this moment, the subprime market was experiencing great turbulence.
The 50 billion US Dollars that JW Foundation had used to short-sell made the subprime market appear like a cripple with a broken leg as it staggered down the cliff.
Then, the funds from Harbor City followed closely behind and kicked the back of this crippled man mercilessly, making the subprime market seem like it was on the brink of collapse.
Furthermore, the settlement time for the transaction arrived right at the most critical moment, just before the subprime market was about to fall off the cliff.
Within 30 minutes, all transactions would no longer be accepted by the system, and the system would start the settlement procedures for the previous transaction period.
These 30 minutes had given the subprime market a precious respite.
In addition to that, it only took 30
minutes for the world’s top capital like
Wall Street to react.
Hence, as soon as trading resumed, Quantum Fund swapped targets and poured everything directly into the subprime market.
Following Quantum Fund was an equally
large amount of funds.
And this was capital from Layman Investment Bank.
“In the past three years, we have earned more than 60 billion US Dollars from the subprime market!”
In the office of the chairman of Layman Investment Bank, Dugg, the chairman looked at the executives in front of him with cold and fierce eyes. He slammed his hand down on the table and roared, “Until now, Layman Investment Bank has 180 billion US Dollars in the subprime market, while the drop moments ago cost us more than 20 billion US Dollars.
“In any case, we can’t let Jasper get away with this!
“Otherwise, we will be the first to die on Wall Street. I will immediately meet with all shareholders and ask to mobilize funds with total authority in order to rescue the market. We can’t control others, but we must act now. Once the subprime market collapses, we will be the first ones to serve as burial offerings!”
At this moment, at the end of the meeting room, Morrison, the president of the Terra regional branch, had a stiff expression on his pale face.
Sure enough, Dugg shifted his eyes onto him.
“The others, go back to work immediately. Morrison, you stay here.”
After he said that, the others stood up in order quickly. When they passed Morrison one by one, they looked at him with sympathy and pity. Then, they left without looking back.
In truth, JW Foundation’s attack on the subprime market had nothing to do with
Morrison, but the conflict between Layman Investment Bank and Jasper was caused by Morrison.
So now that the investment bank was
suffering huge losses, someone had to come out to bear the anger of shareholders, and it was obvious who the sacrificial lamb would be.
This kind of thing was not uncommon in the workplace, and it was even more common on Wall Street, where profit was everything.
Those who could not adapt to this law could only be eliminated.
After everyone was gone, the meeting room became much emptier, yet the atmosphere was more solemn than before.
Dugg looked at Morrison with a straight face. He said, ‘Morrison, according to your ability and qualification, you shouldn’t be holding this position.”
Morrison’s hands that were placed on his knees slowly clenched into fists. He answered calmly, “I know. I asked my father to help me get this position.”
“I’m glad we can talk so openly.”
Dugg lowered his head to remove his glasses and used a cloth to gently wipe the lens. He said, “I must go to see the shareholders, but the investment bank has lost over 20 billion US Dollars. I have t o give the shareholders an explanation regarding this.”
Morrison answered without hesitation, My resignation letter will be on your desk tomorrow.”
“Very well.”
Dugg was not in the mood to speak anymore. Hence, he got up and walked toward the door of the meeting room.
Life at the Top Chapter 1779
The sound of leather shoes against the floor gradually approached and suddenly stopped when it came to Morrison.
Dugg patted Morrison’s shoulder with his palm and said, “Go back. Go to your father. Layman is not for you.”
After he said that, Dugg’s footsteps was heard again. This time, it was drifting away until finally it ended with the sound of the meeting room door closing.
Boom!
Morrison balled his hands into fist and slammed them heavily on the conference table.
The pain caused Morrison’s face to contort, and his eyes were filled with resentment and hatred.
“Jasper! You made me suffer the greatest humiliation of my life. I won’t, and I will never, forgive you!”
“The bulls and bears are fighting each other,” Jasper frowned and said slowly.
On the big screen was a line graph that was constantly moving up and down, violently oscillating, but with no obvious upward or downward trend. It was making Jasper’s face increasingly serious.
Jake’s voice could be heard at this time, ” Quantum Fund and Layman Investment Bank are very determined and have been continuously investing funds to rescue the market. The most important thing is that institutions and retail investors are still waiting and watching.
“In general, they don’t seem to think that the subprime market, which has been soaring for several years, will collapse. So, we have to continue to short under this pressure.’
Jasper nodded. He was quite satisfied.
The maturity of a team was definitely not
something that happened overnight.
Especially the trading team. The
requirements for them were very high be i t from the perspective of intelligence
collection, analysis, or processing. Shortcomings in any of these areas would be the biggest weakness of this team.
Fortunately, after many long hours of training and cultivation, the ability of this team had improved by leaps and bounds.
“How much is left of the 50 billion US Dollars quota given to you before?” Jasper asked.
“We’ve been selling and shorting since the market opened and currently there is about 27 billion or so left that’s not been invested yet,” Jake replied.
Just as Jasper was about to speak, the candlestick chart of the subprime market suddenly oscillated violently.
Jasper and Jake instinctively looked toward the trading column and saw that there were several large orders with a unit price of over 100 million on the buyer side.
At the same moment, the door of the command room was pushed open by Baz. He shouted, “Layman Investment Bank has just decided to spend 5 billion US Dollars on a subprime market repurchase.
They’re acting on it right now. Based on what we have seen, many retail investors and institutions have begun to enter the market as a result of this. They want to provide impetus in the subprime market.”
“Stop them!”
Jasper frowned and said, “We can’t let them build up market confidence.”
“Mr. Laine, I have a suggestion.”
Conrad spoke suddenly.
Jasper looked over and waited for him to
continue,
“We shouldn’t stop them. Let him
continue.”
Conrad said softly, “They want to build market confidence, but they have limited funds. Meanwhile, our funds are limited too. Right now, the United States government and Federal Reserve haven’t done anything, so we have to save up all o f our power and not show our hand to
Layman.
“Hence, we should strategically give up
some of the positions on the market. Let
them raise this and then we’ll buy in all of the funds to let Layman take over.
“This way, it’ll increase Layman and Quantum Fund’s stake and it can also quickly realize our previous investments, which is equivalent to sucking blood from them and feeding ourselves first. When the time for the final blow eventually comes, either Layman or Quantum Fund will fall.”
Life at the Top Chapter 1780
The atmosphere in the command room was a little heavy.
Although Conrad only made a suggestion, Jasper’s previous order was to prevent Layman’s attempt to rescue the market, but Conrad’s proposal was in sharp contradiction to this. He proposed not only to allow the other party to rescue the market, but also to sell the orders they had already sold to Layman.
This was a very risky move.
It was not just that the decision itself was very risky, it had a heavy cost if they failed. If they did not carry this out well enough, it was likely that the upper hand that JW Foundation had established in the subprime market would disappear instantly.
More importantly, this was also a risky move for Conrad.
No one dared to question Jasper’s decision within JW. Jasper was not only the founder of JW, but
he raised JW from a little-known small company to the point where it was now a domestic private enterprise giant.
Therefore, whether it was ordinary employees or high-level employees within JW, they were all used to the enormous weight of Jasper’s words.
Be it was personal prestige or otherwise, Jasper was the undisputed king in JW.
However, Conrad just joined JW, and he had immediately put forward his own suggestions. It was not wrong to prove yourself when you had just joined a new team, but it also depended on what position you were in.
As an executive joining a new company,
his first suggestion was to question the boss’s decision. This was not a wise move regardless of the circumstance.
Jasper did not say a word and Jake did not dare to breathe.
On the contrary, Conrad was very calm. After speaking, he stood silently aside with a calm expression on his face.
Valentine, who did not even have the right to speak, looked at Conrad with distressed eyes at one side.
Conrad was not a subordinate even when h
e was in front of Fabian. At most, he was a
collaborator with no right to speak. Even
the very arrogant Fabian had never denied this before.
Now that he had joined JW, he needed to b e scrutinized and questioned whenever he spoke up.
It was unknown how much time passed since he said this. It might just be ten seconds or maybe even a few minutes before Jasper nodded suddenly and said, ” Very good.
“Carry out Conrad’s suggestions.”
Jasper raised his head to look at Jake and Baz. He frowned and said, “You should learn more from him. If you have your own ideas, you should say them boldly. I won’t eat you. Besides, I am not a god, and I may not always judge the situation. correctly every time. The decisions I make may not always be the best choice too.”
Jake and Baz looked at each other and nodded quickly.
“Go on and continue with your work.”
Jasper dismissed the two with a wave of his hand. Then, he raised his head and smiled at Conrad, “What I need is someone who can look at the problem from a perspective that I can’t see, and then tell me what they observe. I know you are the most qualified person to do this.”
The expression on Conrad’s face was neither sad nor happy. He replied, “Since I decided to help you, I won’t let you down
as long as you don’t let me down.”
Jasper laughed. He said, “Good, I was waiting to hear this from you.”
While the two were talking, Jake and Baz began to implement the suggestions provided by Conrad.
The funds held by the JW Foundation
began to slowly liquidate and withdraw from the market. Meanwhile, Layman and the Quantum Fund were obviously
frightened by the orders JW Foundation
gave up on
This was like a hunter who has been preparing for several days and was cautious and energetic about hunting that, upon sighting his prey, was now suddenly taking the initiative to chop off one of his arms and throw it on the ground.
The immediate reaction of Layman and Quantum Fund was not surprise, but confusion.
Was JW Foundation crazy?
Or did Jasper suddenly come to a realization?
However, the market would not allow them to hesitate for too long. With the withdrawal of JW Foundation’s main funds, the short pressure on the subprime market suddenly eased, so the long institutions and retail hot money immediately seemed to spot the opportunity for a feast. They were all pouncing on this with their eyes twinkling.
In the blink of an eye, most of the first batch of orders released by JW Foundation
was devoured.
Then, Layman and Quantum Fund did not
want to care much anymore, so they immediately began to swallow all the remaining orders.
“Market confidence in the subprime market is returning.”
In the command room, Jasper and Conrad
stared at the screen intently.
“Everything is going as expected. The market’s rebound sentiment will be released in this wave.
“In this way, it can be regarded as a
disguised relief for the pressure we may
bear in the future.”
Conrad looked thoughtful and said slowly, “If your target was the subprime market from the beginning, then under the first step, the market was like a river being blocked off by a dam, and now it is properly discharged. Not only will it reduce the pressure on us, but it can also reduce the total volume of water.
“The problem is that it’s difficult to grasp
to what degree this is happening.” Jasper
accessed the entire subprime market
transaction data. His pupils reflected the dense stream of data, but he was able to accurately capture the information he wanted from these massive lines of numbers.
Jasper rubbed his temples. When he had just finished speaking, Baz returned to the command room with the latest news.
“The Feds issued an announcement. They are announcing a cut in the interest rate and the required rate of return!”
Jasper and Conrad’s expressions changed at the same time and a spot was immediately cleared on the screen to show the latest announcement of the Feds.
“The Feds are so confident to drop 0.25% of the datum point in one go!” Conrad said, looking at the contents of the announcement.
The so-called interest rate cuts and required rate of return cuts were to reduce the interest rate on national loans and reduce the proportion of reserves that banks needed to hand over to the central bank.
In other words, this was an economic stimulus policy that made people realize that it was not profitable to store money i n banks. At the same time, it forced them t o withdraw money for investment.
Throughout the world’s central banks, lowering interest rates and required rate o f return or raising interest rates and reserve funds were the most effective means for central banks to control their economies on the macro-level.
“This is only the Feds first action plan. If
things go as expected, they will join the
game not long after this announcement,”
Jasper concluded.
“Time is running out. We must take more drastic measures to build a favorable position for ourselves before the decisive battle begins.”