Jude obviously still had plenty to say, but h
e forced himself to stop talking when he
heard what Jasper said. Instead, he
nodded and said, “Alright, take your time,
Mr. Laine.”
Jasper chuckled and patted Jude on the
shoulder before he turned and walked
toward the stage that had been
specifically built for the event.
Around ten chairs were placed on the
stage. Naturally, only the most important
people had the right to sit on those chairs.
Not even Woods, who would become the
country’s richest man in the future, had
the right to do so now. Those who were
allowed to sit there were the most
powerful businessmen in the nation.
For example, only presidents of large and
well-established corporations like Vast
Mountain Capital and Leno Group had
seats here.
The podium placed center stage was
where Jasper would be making his
opening speech.
Once Jasper walked onto the stage, all the
presidents, whether they were sitting on
stage and holding conversations or sitting
in the audience and exchanging
pleasantries, immediately stopped what
they were doing and gazed intently at
Jasper.
Jasper, decked out in formal attire,
became the crowd’s focal point. It was
then that people realized that at some
point, this absurdly young man had
become used to being the center of
everyone’s attention as well as the
recipient of their admiration.
The speakers amplified and broadcasted
Jasper’s light cough throughout the venue.
“Gentlemen, I have taken the lead in
hosting the first Somerland Business and
Economic Forum, but it would not have
been made possible without the support o
f the eighty-nine attendees as well as the
support from the government. Before I
officially declare the start of this forum, I
want to thank everyone for their
attendance and thank you for finding the
time during this important period to
gather together and have a fruitful discussion.”
The start of Jasper’s speech was met with thunderous applause.
Everyone here had a high social standing,
so naturally, there were no loud whoops o
f approval. However, that did not stop
them from applauding loudly.
Jasper raised his hands and signaled for
them to stop, and everyone was quick to
obey.
When he gazed at the faces in the audience, Jasper recognized a few businessmen who would make it big in the future, and he also saw a few faces he could not recognize. Despite that, Jasper knew that if they were here at this point, they were forces to be reckoned with.
And these forces would explode with a shocking amount of power.
“Those who’ve spoken to me in the past know I don’t enjoy being buried under mountains of paperwork, drowning in seas of meetings, or long-winded opening speeches. So, I’ll be quick. Since this is an economic forum, allow me to bring up a topic of discussion that will allow
everyone to think outside the box and pick each other’s brains as we work together to resolve the problems we are facing.”
Jasper cut straight to the chase and
redirected the conversation to the core
problem.
“We’ll be discussing just one question in this economic forum. How will private capital respond to foreign capital trampling on and plundering Somerland’s economy?
“This issue concerns the development of all our industries. It does not matter if you’re conducting business online or physically. It also does not matter if you sell bath products or heavy machinery. The country’s economy serves as a platform everyone relies on for development. If we allow others to
destroy this platform, we’ll all lose our sources of income.”
Jasper grew solemn as he said that, and he also raised his voice slightly.
“So, we must resolve the problem of survival before we discuss how we can improve our lives.
“That’s the topic of conversation for today, and it will serve as the core intention behind our discussions later o n.”.
“With that, I declare the start of the first. Somerland Business and Economic Forum. Let us welcome Mr. McNeal from the State Council Finance Department to take the stage.”
Thunderous applause rang out, and everyone watched excitedly as Mr. McNeal walked upstage with a pleasant smile on his face. After exchanging a handshake, Jasper turned and walked towards his seat in the center before quietly waiting for M r. McNeal to begin speaking.
As the economic forum officially started, a press conference was silently making waves far away in New York, United States.
Reporters filled every inch of the large press conference venue, and everywhere you looked, you would see cameras, microphones, and audio processing equipment.
The reporters’ eyes glinted as they gazed a t the three people seated on the platform.
These three seats represented three
different companies.
Joe Langdon from Fongroup, Kennedy
Langdon from Hope Group, and Sawyer
Atticus from Atticus Group.
These three groups were the most well
known groups owned by people of Somer
descent globally. Although Fongroup had
become the punchline of various jokes
after merging and acquiring Layman, it
did not stop the company from
experiencing an exponential growth in
fame.
Everyone knew that this glasses-wearing
old man, who looked gentle and docile
when he smiled, could use several
hundred billion US Dollars to purchase a
bankrupt bank without even batting an
eyelid.
“Mr. Half-the-Harbor Langdon, does the
cross-ownership among the three groups
mean you may merge to form one mega
corporation?” a Meleysian reporter asked
excitedly.
Joe smiled as he shook his head and
replied, “No. Although our companies are partaking in cross-ownership, we will be conducting operations and audits independently without getting involved in the other corporation’s managerial activities.”
“Moreover, we will only have cross
ownership of dividend shares. We won’t b e entitled to join the company as a part of their board of directors, nor will we have the right to make any decisions or cast our votes. Thus, this is merely an in depth collaboration from a financial and economic point of view. We have no plans to merge our corporations.”
He had just finished speaking when
someone else asked a follow-up question.
“Mr. Kennedy Langdon and Mr. Sawyer Atticus . From what we know, Fongroup suffered several hundred billion dollars worth of losses after Mr. Joe Langdon merged and acquired Layman Investment Bank. Aren’t you afraid of getting dragged into that mess by collaborating with him now?”
Beep…
All the reporters present gazed at their colleague with respect when they heard the question.
These three people were all bigwigs in Harbor City, and Harbor City reporters would never dare ask such a question. Thus, the only person who would dare ask a question like that would be an American finance reporter who worked for a local company.
Joe glanced at the blonde-haired woman. Usually, he might have snuck an extra look or two at the gorgeous woman’s enticing figure, but now, he had no interest in that…
