American Life

Chapter 163: Exchange of interests, the style of painting is not quite right
Menlo Park, located in the San Francisco Bay Area, has only a permanent population of 3.2, but it is one of the areas with the strongest technological atmosphere in the world.In addition to traditional American technology giants such as Google, Facebook, and HP setting up their headquarters here, it also includes research and development institutions such as Bell Labs, Fujitsu, and JPMorgan Chase Technology Center.Many large foreign companies have also chosen to set up North American branches here, including Sony, Philips, BOE, etc. It can be said that there are many giants.

Silicon Valley Bank, which mainly serves technology companies and venture capital companies, naturally chose to set up its headquarters here.

In the spa at the Rosewood Sand Hill ultra-luxury hotel in downtown Menlo Park, a young girl with brown hair held a piece of black basalt that was polished into a pebble shape and pressed and rubbed it on Charlie's body.The stones are pre-heated, and the heat penetrates the muscle tissue, creating a feeling of deep relaxation in the body.

On his right is Jobs, and on his left is Ken Wilcox, the current chairman of Silicon Valley Bank. He has a round face, a bald head, and an elderly white man who looks like a comedian on a children's show.

"Ouch~" Ken couldn't help but let out a low groan as his bones were pressed against each other.

"The girls here are very professional, aren't they? There will be more wonderful projects later." Ken turned his head and looked at Charlie beside him.

"The one next to you is not interested in this place. If you didn't come, he wouldn't be bothered to come here." He pointed to Jobs on the other side of Charlie.

"This kind of marginalization can't really relax the body. Whenever I feel physically tired, I will choose Eastern meditation to relieve it." Jobs is still so talkative, which is related to his experience when he was young.

"Let's talk about business. I don't want to delay the next program." Charlie waved his hand, and the three young girls stopped and left consciously.

"Young people are always so impatient." Ken complained when he was interrupted.

The external image of the giants of technology companies is often full of technology. When attending public events, they always mention "the future of mankind" and "the cutting edge of technology", giving people a feeling of low materialism. For example, Xiao Zha always opens He drives his Honda Fit nanny car to work, but little does he know that he also lives in an ultra-luxurious villa. The parking lot can barely accommodate the luxury cars. Ellison takes turns living in 20 mansions and always likes to drive a sports car on his private island. Cyclonus, as for the one who built the electric car, his private life is more complicated than his family history...

All in all, the rich are the rich, and there is no difference between the technology rich and the traditional rich.

In contrast, the Ken in front of him gave Charlie a sense of reality.

Ken turned sideways, took the cigar handed over by Charlie, cut off the end of the cigar with cigar cutters, and said without raising his head as he did so: "Silicon Valley Bank has many institutions and individuals involved, and it is not easy to get all these people to nod. Easy things.”

"Vanguard, State Street, Apollo Global Management, Blackstone, Davis Select Advisors, Invesco Holdings..." Ken read out a long list of names.

In the United States, the equity behind any large enterprise is intricate and interconnected.

For example, Vanguard holds nearly % of Apple's shares, Davis is the tenth largest shareholder of Berkshire, and Invesco is one of the world's five largest independent asset management companies.

"The current market capitalization of Silicon Valley Bank is US$114 billion. I only need a relative controlling stake. Steve has to step in for Vanguard, Mr. Ken will negotiate for Davis, and I just have connections at Apollo Global Management. As for the rest, Yes, I believe that after the three major shareholders nod, they will be able to choose whether to inject capital or equity transactions.”

Steve neither nodded nor refused. In fact, Charlie had already drawn him into the group, and the interests of the two had long been aligned.

But Ken was a little hesitant: "I'm afraid this matter won't be easy to handle."

Charlie then turned to him and said with a smile: "You took over from Roger Smith, one of the founders of the company, and became the chairman of the board of directors in 95. It has been 12 years in the blink of an eye, but your position is probably not very stable, right? Yes. A man named Dennis Lynch seems to be eyeing you. When the time comes, I can support you to continue."

Speaking of why he chose Silicon Valley Bank, in addition to focusing on the high returns in the technology industry, there was also a classmate who also worked at the top of Silicon Valley Bank. He revealed a lot of information to Charlie, including Ken's dilemma.

"Why should I trust you?" Ken looked at Charlie and did not accept the plan he proposed.

"Aren't you curious, where did the funds for me to join Apple's board of directors come from?" Charlie's smile at this time even seemed a bit unfathomable.

The Science and Technology Development Fund has very little public information to the outside world, and Ken knows this very well.

He looked at Charlie and couldn't help but fell into thought.Saving PB that was on the verge of bankruptcy, shopping on Wall Street, entering Apple... a series of operations seemed like something that this young man could do. Although Charlie did not disclose any information, Ken could not help but believe it. After all, except for Apart from the white gloves on the surface, he really couldn't think of a second reason.

There was a huge figure standing behind the young man in front of him. It didn't matter if he offended him, but if he offended the person behind him, it would not end well.

Of course, this is also related to Charlie's words. In a sense, he is not lying. He is indeed a wage earner from the big family, but now he borrows their name for a small amount of time.

If you don't believe it, you will naturally prove it to Steve Jobs in private.

Originally, Charlie thought that Ken would make a decision later, but unexpectedly, he nodded directly to express his agreement.

"It's settled, I will fully support you."

"Thank you, help is always mutual." Charlie stretched out his hand.

Ken shook his hand.

"You can't leave, the next project will be an eye-opener for you."

"Sorry, I'm not very interested in these performances." Charlie shook his head.

Without staying longer, Charlie then chose to leave, and Steve and Charlie left together.

"Would you like to go to Cupertino? Johnny and Cook both want to meet you." Jobs suggested.

Johnny Ash is Apple's chief designer, responsible for the design of all Apple products. Another Cook, who once worked for IBM, has many years of supply chain management experience. The two are considered Jobs' right-hand men.

After Jobs left in 2011, only these two people were qualified and capable to take over. In the end, Cook, who was more stable, gained the trust of the board of directors, while Johnny left sadly a few years later.

"No, let's wait until the shareholders' meeting early next year to see you again." Charlie shook his head with a smile.

Apple's shareholders' meeting is held in March every year. It is responsible for reviewing financial reports, hearing reports from senior management, voting on company proposals, director election, etc. Charlie's official entry into the board of directors also requires corresponding procedures at the shareholders' meeting.

"By the way, have you done what I told you last time?" Charlie asked the other party.

"It's being done, and the idea you put forward about the app store has been adopted in the internal meeting."

"How about cooperating with pb magazine's content?"

"Under discussion." Jobs said cautiously.

"Discuss? Will anyone refute it? Tell me the relevant names."

Jobs immediately sneered and said: "There's no need for this, I will push forward with this matter."

Charlie seemed so approachable before that Jobs almost forgot about his identity as the largest single shareholder.

How could he not obey the boss's order?

Charlie was very satisfied with Jobs' attitude and gave special instructions before getting off the bus.

"Don't forget the physical exam."

·
After rushing back after a long journey, Charlie immediately went to visit Ivanni.

Her right leg was in a heavy cast and she was being hoisted. When she saw Charlie, she exclaimed: "They said you want to acquire Silicon Valley Bank?"

Her expression was one of disbelief.

Although it is a small local bank, Silicon Valley Bank is one of the more famous ones because of its clients, and it is considered one of the leading small banks. This is why a local bank has so many large investment institutions holding shares.

Ivanie naturally also knew the name of Silicon Valley Bank. When she heard that Charlie wanted to acquire this bank instead of a small local bank in Utah, she chose not to believe it for the first time. After repeated confirmation from other people, , and then accepted the news.

"That's right." Charlie nodded.

Seeing Charlie's calm expression, Ivanie vaguely guessed that this matter might not work, and she didn't want to hurt Charlie, so she felt relieved.

"No matter what, it's just a local bank, and its profitability may not be as profitable as selling a few more pairs of socks." She asked Charlie to sit beside the bed.

"I didn't say it failed. In fact, the progress is pretty good. Soon... I will gain absolute control of more than half." Charlie reported the situation.

"Are you kidding me?" Evanie was a little unbelievable. From his tone, it was as simple as buying a car.

"What have you been going through in the past few months?" Ivanie keenly discovered that Charlie's energy was much stronger than when they first met.

You know, it's less than a year.

In this year, Charlie has gone through the path of those who have been leading for ten years.

"Anyway, it's a very dreamy story."

"Then do you want to tell me?" Ivanie grabbed Charlie's hand.

After all, the situation she encountered in the cave was very critical before. Ivanie was sick, and under special pressure, the decisions she made were often irrational. But now her behavior is completely solid and its nature is completely different.

"Of course, I can tell you slowly."

·
The public hospital where Charlie and Ivanie are located is located in Lookout Mountain, a small city in Georgia near Tennessee.Charlie asked Kayla to contact a local high-end private medical institution. Now that Ivanie has completed the operation, she needs meticulous care.

When he was transferred here, Charlie felt that this place was still a lot different from the one in Nashville. The medical staff were not as professional as before, and the equipment was much less. But fortunately, the place was very spacious, and it was also good for Ivanie. Enthusiastic enough.

Charlie deliberately chose a room with a large color TV. At ten o'clock in the night, he called Faith and others over. After dinner, he locked on the Bravo entertainment channel.

The prime time channel broadcasts a reality show called "Project Runway", which is a fashion competition show in which designers complete various design tasks in a short period of time and ultimately compete for the winner.

Charlie looked at it with little interest, after all, he was really not interested in these fashion matters, but a certain kind of girl in the room watched with gusto.

After the reality show is over, it’s Bravo channel’s flagship series “Grey’s Anatomy Season ”…

Nearing the end of the night, Gabriella had fallen asleep on the armrest, and the remaining people began to play hater frequently.

"Here we come!" Charlie slapped his thigh, startling the trapped people.

Among these people, the most curious one is Ivanie. She did not participate in this show, but now she wants to learn about Charlie, Faith and others through this show.

The first shot is of Gabriella. She is wearing exquisite clothes and walking into Charlie's bedroom with a tray. On the tray is a dazzling array of breakfast. The camera follows her to the bedside. Charlie gets up while eating. During breakfast, he began to review the company report that had just been delivered, showing a diligent work attitude.

"The bed is so clean, and you can still fall asleep by yourself, this show is not the same at all." Faith said immediately.

"Isn't it usually like this?" Ivanie asked doubtfully.

Among the people present, even Keira knew a lot of inside information under the influence. At this moment, they looked at each other and sneered slightly.

"You'll know when the time comes." Taylor let it slip.

Artis on the side also joined in the complaint: "Since I became a secretary, I have read all these briefings and then forwarded them to the boss! Why is there no my name???"

She felt deeply buried.

It seemed that Faith had a bad start, and everyone's comments turned directly to the direction of the complaint conference.

"Taylor, are you too scheming? You ask Charlie to help you think of lyrics every day?" Faith didn't expect that Taylor's creation would now become like this.

"Actually... Charlie helped me write a lot of the lyrics." Taylor said quietly.

In fact, she is now suffering from Charlie's severe dependence, and without Charlie's help, she is no longer able to complete the creation of lyrics and music independently.

Everyone exclaimed when they heard Taylor tell the real situation.

In everyone's mind, Taylor has always been a talented singer-songwriter.

Only now do I realize that the Taylor driver behind the scenes is actually Charlie!

"Look at your reactions, I can't write a few songs yet?" Seeing everyone's dumbfounded expressions, Charlie complained.

The scene then changed to Faith, who was squatting early in the morning, and then measuring her circumference in front of the mirror in the living room, dripping with sweat.

"So Faith, you are the most scheming one?" Taylor whistled.

"Didn't I ask this section to be cut out later? Why is it still there?" Faith was a little at a loss and had to admit:
"I can't help it. At my age, I have to work hard to stay in shape."

Next was Artis. She actually had a life-size cutout of Charlie in her room, and she was throwing darts at Charlie's face.

Charlie's face in the clip art is covered with dense needle holes, and he looks quite traumatized.

"Ahem, this is just entertainment!" Artis's face turned blue and white...

(End of this chapter)