Chapter 522: US Dollars and Gold!
The next day, early morning!
When Li Yi awoke from the soft bed in the Cloud Top No. 1, it was already nine o’clock in the morning.
Warm sunlight streamed through the spacious, bright floor-to-ceiling windows into the bedroom, filling the entire room with a cozy warmth. If it weren’t for work waiting to be handled, Li Yi would have loved to stay in bed until noon.
It took him a while to gather his strength before he finally climbed out of bed!
After a quick wash, Li Yi finally made his way downstairs.
However, as soon as he stepped downstairs, he saw Tie Ying and the others staring at him with strange expressions.
Just as Li Yi was about to ask what was going on, he saw Tie Ying point toward the sofa beside him.
Li Yi followed the direction of his finger and discovered that someone was actually lying on the spacious sofa.
Upon closer inspection, it was none other than that loser Li Yunbao!
Li Yi was taken aback at first. How the hell did this guy end up at his place?
Last night, he’d received a telegram from Huang Lixing saying that Li Yunbao had been rescued, all the kidnappers had been apprehended, and every penny of the ransom had been recovered, so he’d returned to Cloudtop No. 1 with peace of mind.
Since he was really quite tired, Li Yi not only had Tie Ying and the others guard the ground floor but also told them not to disturb him no matter who came.
At the same time, to prevent Li Futiao and the others from calling, he had even gone so far as to unplug the phone lines.
He really never expected that Li Yunbao would actually show up at his place!
“When did he get here?”
“A little after three in the morning!”
Then Tie Ying added, “Mr. Li said not to let anyone disturb you, so I didn’t let Young Master Li come upstairs!”
“You did the right thing!”
After saying that, Li Yi gently nudged Li Yunbao’s leg, which was dangling off the edge of the sofa, but Li Yunbao, fast asleep, didn’t react at all.
Although he had spent most of the days since his kidnapping in a daze, the intense sense of danger had left him physically and mentally exhausted. Now that he had finally been able to relax, he was naturally sleeping very soundly.
Li Yi took a look at him, then said to Tie Ying, “Leave a few guys to watch him. Let’s head to the office first!”
“But what if Young Master Li wakes up? What should we do?”
“Have him change into some clean clothes, then come find me at the office!”
“Yes, sir!”
Shortly after, Li Yi left Cloud Peak No. 1 under the escort of Tie Ying and the others.
……..
When Li Yi arrived at the company, Lan Xinyi and Zhao Xinlan immediately came to his office!
“Have a seat!”
Once the two had seated themselves, Li Yi asked, “How did things go with the money transfer?”
Zhao Xinlan replied immediately, “Boss, as you requested, we’ve converted all 6.094 billion of the company’s funds into US dollars and deposited them in major banks: 500 million at Citibank, 400 million at Hang Seng Bank, and 302 million at Standard Chartered Bank. All deposits are for a one-year term!”
“Very good. What about the loan?” Li Yi asked again.
“Boss, these banks have all responded positively to our loan requests, but their interest rates vary, so we’re still negotiating with them!” Zhao Xinlan replied.
“Oh, what interest rates did they offer?”
“Citibank offered 5.28%, Standard Chartered Bank offered 5.0%, and Hang Seng Bank has the lowest rate at just 4.1%!” Zhao Xinlan replied.
Li Yi thought for a moment and said, “No need to negotiate with Hang Seng—just go ahead and take the loan. Tell Manager Xie to approve a higher credit limit for our company!”
“As for Citibank and Hang Seng Bank, try to negotiate the rates down if possible, but if not, just move forward. Get the loan agreements finalized as soon as possible!”
“Yes!”
Li Yi then added, “Besides these major banks, don’t overlook the smaller ones either. Borrow from any bank willing to lend to us!”
“But what about the interest rates? Small banks usually charge higher rates!” Zhao Xinlan said.
“Don’t worry about the interest rates. As long as they don’t exceed 6%, it’s fine. Bottom line: if they’re willing to lend, our company is willing to borrow!” Li Yi said.
“Boss, we don’t have any collateral. I’m afraid those small banks won’t lend us much. It’s fine—we’ll take whatever they’re willing to give!” Li Yi said.
“Got it!”
“Go back to work!”
“Yes!”
After Zhao Xinlan left, Li Yi turned to Lan Xinyi and said, “Do you know why I’m doing this?”
“The Hong Kong dollar is going to depreciate, or the US dollar is going to appreciate!” Lan Xinyi replied.
“That’s right. If things go as expected, the Hong Kong dollar will depreciate significantly in the coming period, while the US dollar will appreciate slightly,” Li Yi said.
“Boss, by putting all our funds into one-year time deposits, are you assuming that the exchange rate fluctuations between the Hong Kong dollar and the US dollar will last at least a year?” Lan Xinyi asked.
“Yes, and possibly even longer!”
Currently, the Hong Kong dollar and the US dollar operate under a floating exchange rate system, with the rate generally maintaining a range of 1:5 to 1:5.6—meaning one US dollar can be exchanged for between 5 and 5.65 Hong Kong dollars—and the fluctuations are not particularly large.
However, after entering the 1980s, a lack of effective monetary management and lax regulation led to excessive credit expansion, plunging the real estate and stock markets into a major crisis.
The result was a sharp deterioration in Hong Kong’s fundamental economic conditions and a highly fragile financial system. Coupled with the significant appreciation of the U.S. dollar, this increased pressure on the Hong Kong dollar to depreciate.
Coupled with certain political factors, this directly led to a rapid depreciation of the Hong Kong dollar over the next year, with its real purchasing power falling by one-third.
The Hong Kong dollar’s exchange rate against the US dollar plummeted to an alarming level, dropping from the current rate of 5.06 HKD to 1 USD all the way down to a historic low of 9.60 HKD to 1 USD.
That is why Li Yi exchanged all his Hong Kong dollars for US dollars and deposited them in the bank. When the term deposit matures next year, he will simply withdraw the US dollars and exchange them back into Hong Kong dollars. Even without counting interest, he will receive 11.54 billion Hong Kong dollars—nearly doubling his money.
Lan Xinyi furrowed her brow and asked, “But why are you taking out massive bank loans at the same time you’re depositing money?”
“Hehe, because there’s a lucrative investment opportunity on the horizon right now. I want to profit from exchange rate fluctuations, but I also don’t want to miss this chance!” Li Yi replied.
Lan Xinyi’s eyes lit up, and she immediately asked, “What kind of project?”
“What do you think?” Li Yi countered.
Lan Xinyi frowned and thought for a moment, then said, “Gold!”
“Why gold?” Li Yi asked with interest.
“Everyone knows the relationship between the US dollar and gold. Since the dollar is appreciating, there’s no reason for gold to stay put, so I think gold prices will go up!” Lan Xinyi analyzed.
“Clap, clap, clap!”
Li Yi clapped his hands and said, “That’s a solid analysis. Gold is indeed likely to go up in price. So as soon as the company’s funds are in place, your investment department should go all out to buy gold at the bottom—buy as much as you possibly can!”
Gold was undoubtedly one of the most promising investment opportunities in the early 1980s. At the moment, the price of gold was hovering between $260 and $300 per ounce, but in just three months, it would reach $599 per ounce.
In other words, investing in gold now would yield a return of more than double the investment in just three months.
Naturally, Li Yi wasn’t about to let an opportunity like this slip by.
Although Lan Xinyi didn’t know where Li Yi had gotten his information or why he was so certain,
But she understood Li Yi’s temperament and knew he didn’t like his subordinates questioning him, so she immediately replied, “Alright, I’ll start preparing to buy gold at the bottom right away!”
“This plan must remain strictly confidential; it must not be leaked under any circumstances!” Li Yi said in a stern voice.
“Yes, sir. Rest assured—I won’t even tell the other team members until the very last moment!”
“Good. Just a reminder: if you have any extra money, you can invest it too,” Li Yi said casually.
“Yes…”
Just as they were speaking, a series of urgent knocks suddenly sounded at the door.
Before Li Yi could say a word, Li Yunbao pushed the door open and walked in, followed by Li Fuzhao and Zhou Xinghua…
……..