After get off work, Simon returned to Malibu on time today because he had to hold a party.

This matter has to go back to the purchase of Cape Dume Park. After several months of operation, George Norman has taken care of the state government, but if Simon wants to get Cape Dume Park, he still needs to solve the problem of Malibu locals.

residents' problems.

Although local residents in Malibu seldom pay attention to Cape Dume Park on weekdays, and more tourists who only visit Malibu will climb up to the sharp angle of the cliff to look at the sea view. However, Cape Dume Park is a public place in Malibu after all.

Only with the approval of community residents can Simon completely transform it into private ownership.

Tonight's party is mainly to entertain community committee representatives and some important residents.

Because of Simon's personal habits, the party was held in Jenny's villa on the east side of Cape Dume Park.

As soon as they entered the door, Janet, who was instructing the party company staff to prepare for the party, came over and whispered to Simon: "I have basically done it. Our foundation will donate 1 million US dollars to fund the primary and secondary schools in Dumeijiao.

Construction, and then they will also participate in lobbying for Malibu to become an independent city. Then, they will vote for us to buy Dume Point Park. Tonight, you just need to accompany them to eat, drink and chat."

The North American real estate bubble in the 1980s promoted a peak period of construction in Malibu, but Malibu really became popular in the 1990s, especially after Larry Ellison began to speculate on Malibu real estate.

Today's Malibu is not an independent city, it is just a district under the jurisdiction of Los Angeles County, and it is far less crowded with celebrities than it was later.

In recent years, Malibu residents have been seeking to establish an independent city. According to California law, after obtaining municipal status, Malibu will no longer need to be under the jurisdiction of the Los Angeles County government, and can make independent laws and reject various projects from the Los Angeles County government.

planning.

In recent years, with the rapid development of the urban area, the Los Angeles County government has been trying to extend many engineering projects to Malibu. Malibu residents have also been struggling to resist the highways, sewage pipes and even nuclear power plants forced in by the county government.

plan.

It is conceivable that if any of the above projects were to settle in Malibu, it would be difficult for Malibu to become a livable paradise.

therefore.

If a billionaire with strong financial resources like Simon can settle in Malibu, it will definitely promote the development of this area. In comparison, a state park that is basically just bushes on weekdays will seem insignificant. Residents will do

It’s completely self-evident how to choose.

After the party in the evening, there was no suspense anymore.

Inside the mansion in the west of Cape Dume.

In the bedroom, after taking a shower, Simon walked to the bedside, kissed Janet on the face who was leaning on the bedside and reading a magazine, and asked: "In the evening, you said you would donate 1 million US dollars to the primary and secondary schools in Malibu.

?”

"Yes," Janet nodded, but added: "It's not a donation. There are no such schools in Malibu yet. Residents have always wanted to build them, but it's a pity that the county government doesn't give money."

Simon picked up Janet's light body and threw it to the other side of the big bed. He sat down on the bed and asked, "This is a good thing. Why don't you give me money?"

Janet was thrown away by Simon, pretending to be angry and took a picture of him with a magazine before saying: "Two years ago, the county government wanted to build a sewage pipeline extending from Santa Monica, but it was rejected here.

, and many other things have been blocked. It’s strange that the residents here are so disobedient and are willing to pay.”

"In this case, let's donate more and build a better school. Our little ones will have to go to school here in the future."

"One million dollars is already a lot. Besides, our little guy won't go to school here. He will definitely go to the best private school."

"Okay," Simon nodded with a smile and said, "Mom decides about school."

Janet giggled, and was about to turn off the light when she saw Simon, and added: "One more thing, the shell company Bingshan helped us set up recently took over another building, and all the property rights including the land were added to the

$30 million together.”

With that said, Janet came over and opened the drawer of the bedside table, took out a document, opened it, found a flat map on it and showed it to Simon.

In order to replicate the Avengers Tower in Manhattan, Simon needed to buy six buildings between 59th Street and 60th Street east of Madison Avenue in Manhattan.

After the real estate bubble burst last year with the stock market crash, this matter became much easier. The selected land was not of the "center of the universe" level next to Fifth Avenue. The shell company that Aunt Janet helped set up had previously used 2,000

After buying two buildings for US$10,000 and US$35 million, including the current one, Simon has obtained half of the land he needs.

Simon looked at the information on the other three buildings marked on the map, including a 16-story apartment building. This is the tallest building among the six buildings, and it is obviously the hardest nut to crack: "I want to continue next.

Isn’t it a bit difficult to acquire?”

Janet also reached out and clicked on the apartment building, and said: "It is difficult to persuade the residents in this building to sell their houses together. There are two options. For those residents who are unwilling to sell their properties, one is

We buy equivalent apartments nearby and let them move there, or replace them with properties in our future building."

Simon said: "Choose the first option as much as possible. It is not convenient to reveal our building plans now."

"I think so too," Janet nodded and said, "But Simon, you have to pay attention to your financial situation recently."

The original two buildings have cost 55 million US dollars, and including the next 30 million US dollars that need to be spent, this is already 85 million US dollars.

The US$300 million that Simon had previously cashed out from selling Motorola shares was running low after several months of spending. Moreover, James Raybould has been investing in new technology companies according to Simon's instructions.

The money is no longer enough to pay for the next $30 million to buy a house.

"Dead Man" and "When Harry Met Sally" have generated revenue one after another, and the financial situation of Daenerys Pictures has been eased. But if Simon plans to find a filming location for the company, it will definitely be a big deal

An investment.

Everywhere costs money.

Moreover, Simon will need next year to continue cashing out money from the stock market, based on his public commitments in the process of reducing his holdings of Motorola shares.

"Raybould will come over from New York tomorrow, I'll talk to him first," Simon said after thinking for a moment: "Moreover, compared to the assets in my name, my current personal debt ratio is still very low, and the bank must be very

Are you willing to lend me money?"

Janet said: "Of course, but you actually don't like borrowing money at all, right?"

"Yes," Simon nodded and said, "Speaking of which, where did you hide those IOUs I wrote back then? I should be able to get them back now, right?"

"I don't plan to give it to you anymore. I want you to owe me my whole life."

"Too cruel."

"uh-huh."

The next day, James Raybould came to Los Angeles and brought Simon the news that he still needed to spend money.

Fortunately, this is all good news that Simon likes to hear.

"The valuation of Cisco's new round of financing was finally confirmed to be US$120 million. We invested US$18 million to obtain 15% of the company's shares. In addition, Quantum-Link, this small company recently wanted to break away from Apple.

After negotiation, we invested US$5 million to obtain 25% of the shares of this company. At the same time, I got the priority for Quantum-Link’s next round of financing. Next is..."

James Raybould has recently negotiated equity investments in five companies.

However, Simon actually only cares about two of them.

Needless to say, Cisco, a super giant whose market value once exceeded US$600 billion during the new technology wave in the late 1990s, has already been targeted by Simon.

US$18 million is used to acquire 15% of Cisco's shares. Even if it will be diluted in many years to come, even if only 10% is left, at the top of Cisco's stock price, this share will reach US$60 billion, with a return rate of

More than three thousand times. What's more, Simon will naturally not be satisfied with the current shareholding ratio, and will definitely continue to increase his holdings in the future.

The other one, Quantum-Link, was only found by Simon after a careful search.

The Chinese transliteration of Quantum is 'Quantum', which means 'quantum' in English, so many technology companies like to use the word Quantum. As for Quantum-Link, no one knows the company's current name, but its later name

But it is a household name, America Online (AOL).

What Simon remembers most is the collapse that followed the merger of AOL and Time Warner around the turn of the millennium.

At its peak, the combined market value of AOL-Time Warner exceeded US$300 billion. However, just a few years later, as the Internet bubble burst, AOL became almost penniless, with its market value falling by more than 90%, and Time Warner also fell.

Therefore, the vitality is injured.

However, before the dot-com bubble burst, AOL was definitely a company worth investing in.

What's more, acquiring 25% of AOL's shares for US$5 million, considering that AOL's market capitalization at its peak was more than US$160 billion, is a complete bargain.

"As for the Qualcomm company in San Diego, they currently have no financing plan, but the other party also said that if there is such intention, they will contact us. Simon, the total amount of these five investments is US$65 million, but Westeros

There is only US$28.55 million left on the company's books now. If you are sure there is no problem, we may need to take out a loan."

After cashing out Motorola's more than 300 million U.S. dollars and setting aside the profits tax, Simon spent more than half of it to increase his stake in Microsoft and other companies. He also spent a large amount to buy the copyrights of "The Lord of the Rings" and other series, as well as the two properties in Manhattan.

Building expenses.

There are now 28.55 million left, and more has been given away.

After doing some mental calculations, Simon recalled the Gulfstream IV business jet he had ordered previously. The bare metal price was US$16 million. Including decoration costs, it would cost approximately US$18 million.

At first, Simon only paid part of the deposit, and the plane would be delivered next month, which would allow Simon to fly to Europe to attend the Cannes Film Festival in France. However, Simon also needed to pay the remaining balance, which was another expense.

The budget of the Manhattan building, the investment budget of five technology companies, and the budget of private jets, these three items alone require about 100 million US dollars.

It is impossible for Simon to sell his shares in the Westeros Company. Because of the nature of the Westeros Company, it would be very large to issue bonds publicly. Therefore, a loan is basically Simon's only option.

Although he doesn't like borrowing money in his heart, Simon also knows that borrowing money is necessary if he wants to expand his career rapidly. Moreover, compared to Simon's current net worth, it is only a loan from Daenerys Films, and Simon's personal

His debt ratio is less than 10%, which is definitely very low among the rich, and banks are definitely very willing to lend him money.

After careful discussion with James Raybould, Simon made the decision to continue the loan of $100 million.

After dealing with personal financial issues, April is coming to an end unknowingly.

After two consecutive weeks of continuous release, the cumulative North American box office of "When Harry Met Sally" has unknowingly exceeded US$70 million, which was already the top ten in the North American box office rankings last year. Although the single-week box office dropped to

It’s below 8 million U.S. dollars, but as the movie continues to be released, there is no doubt that “When Harry Met Sally” will exceed 100 million at the domestic box office.
To be continued...