America: Starting with the acquisition of MGM

Chapter 4 This is how the financial game is played

"How much?" Charlie Cooper's eyes widened, as if he didn't hear clearly.

"Ten million, conservatively speaking!" Eric said word by word.

Ten million U.S. dollars, and in 2002, was enough to shoot two or three small-investment movies. Many directors and actors have never been exposed to a movie with an investment of 10 million in their lives.

After being stunned for a while, Charlie Cooper finally came to his senses: "Son, what on earth do you want to do?"

Eric didn't want to hide it from his father. After all, he was his blood relative and the closest person in the world. Moreover, if he really wanted to acquire MGM, he would definitely need his father's help.

"Dad, since you want to enter the entertainment industry, what's better than owning your own film company? After working for MGM for decades, don't you have the idea of ​​​​being independent?"

Charlie Cooper nodded slightly: "Every wage earner wants to be a boss, but this industry is very complicated, and success cannot be achieved by just getting excited. There are too many bankrupt companies in Hollywood every year."

"Son, I have been in this industry for more than thirty years and have seen too many ups and downs. In this era, it is almost impossible to succeed in setting up a film company with one's own strength."

Eric shook his finger: "No, dad, I don't want to start a company, because that would be too troublesome. You have to do a series of troublesome things such as production and distribution by yourself. To reconnect with the relationship, what I want to do is To acquire an established company, and what better company than MGM?"

The air froze for a while, and Charlie Cooper reached out to touch his son's head to see if he had a fever.

"Dad, I'm awake!" Eric frowned.

Suddenly, Charlie Cooper laughed heartily, and the fat on his chin trembled: "Eric, you asked me to pay for MGM. God wouldn't even dare to make such a joke. This is worse than starting a company by myself." The company is not reliable yet.”

"Although MGM's development has not been very good in recent years, it still has decades of history. It was once one of the top eight companies. Do you know how much this history is worth?"

Eric picked up the remaining half of the pear and took a mouthful of juice: "Since being acquired by Kirk Kerkorian, MGM has embarked on a road of no return. According to my estimation, the debt should be at Between $1 billion and $1.1 billion.”

"As for the assets, including the studio, film source library and various props, I estimate that the value is between 1.8 and 2 billion US dollars, right?"

Charlie Cooper couldn't help but frowned. As the CEO of MGM, although he had not carefully checked every account, especially since he had just finished filming "Windtalkers", it would definitely have a huge impact on the company's finances.

But I couldn't help but feel my heart skip a beat when I heard my son's speculation, because the company's internal financial statements for the first quarter were not much different from this number. This kind of information is not something that ordinary investors can find.

As of the first quarter, MGM's assets were assessed at about $3.5 billion, while its debt was $3.1 billion.

Eric Cooper had no interest in movies before and had no reason to care about the development of MGM. Naturally, MGM's financial information could not be found in the hospital, but he could guess so accurately. It seemed that There really is a bear coming.

"Eric, even if what you said is correct, that's 3 billion U.S. dollars, a full 300 times. Tell me what can I do with 10 million U.S. dollars?"

"I can do a lot, and I will let the money make money. Besides, if I really want to acquire MGM, I won't actually use 3 billion, but 1 billion will be enough."

"Oh? What do you want to do?"

"It's actually not difficult. To put it simply, it's a loan from the future. I will try to raise US$1 billion in the first step, and then I will need you, dad, to come forward."

"You need to get loans from major banks. With MGM's financial situation, it actually deals with these banks a lot, doesn't it? Dad, you should be familiar with this process."

"With your connections, we can use 1 billion U.S. dollars as a base, and then use MGM's assets as collateral to borrow 2 billion from major banks. In this way, we can have 3 billion U.S. dollars. I think the acquisition will not be a problem."

Eric's idea sounds strange. After all, MGM doesn't belong to you yet, so why should you use other people's assets as collateral?

But this is a financial game. Charlie Cooper knows very well that the major banks have long been salivating over MGM, but they have never been able to find the opportunity to swallow this big cake.

And if someone really takes the initiative and brings the opportunity to them, even if there is only a 50% success rate, they will definitely be willing to lend. After all, the bank will never lose money.

If Eric succeeds in swindling the elephant, the 2 billion loan will be a long-term process, and the bank will receive huge interest. If Eric cannot succeed in MGM, the bank can take the piece. Big cake.

Even if the acquisition is unsuccessful in the end, the bank can still reap short-term interest, and with a base of US$1 billion, it is not afraid of Eric defaulting on the loan.

Across the world, most people can't beat banks, and they don't lose money anyway. So the key is where do these 1 billion US dollars come from?

Charlie Cooper pondered for a moment, and his eyes became formal: "Eric, it seems that you have studied finance very well, and you have also made a perfect plan, but I have a question, where are you going to get 1 billion US dollars?" .”

Eric smiled mysteriously: "Dad, this is what I have to consider. I guarantee you will see the results within a month."

He didn't dare to tell his father about making money by betting on football, or he would think he was crazy.

And there are risks involved. Once the casino discovers something unusual, it will inevitably lead to another big trouble. It’s better not to involve dad.

The two father and son sat on the hospital bed and talked for more than three hours until late at night, when Charlie Cooper was finally convinced.

Of course, the most important thing is that their family can afford ten million dollars, and Charlie Cooper has stayed in an executive position for so many years.

It’s certainly not good compared to the big guys on the Forbes list, but it’s also far higher than many celebrities.

Although he was a little distressed to spend 10 million dollars to train his son, who would let it be his own son, not to mention that he was also moved by the future scene described by Eric.

Acquiring MGM and becoming your own boss is a gamble. Isn’t life just a gamble?

Two days later, Eric went through the discharge procedures accompanied by his mother. Dr. Charles still looked strange. Faced with such a thing that went against medical common sense, he could only attribute it to a miracle.

The car slowly drives into Beverly Hills. In this city within a city in Los Angeles, you can see stars on the big screen, world-famous football stars, world-renowned artists, etc., as well as countless luxury stores.

The moment Eric opened the door, he heard a few bangs and bangs, and colorful ribbons fell from the sky and fell on him. A group of people rushed over and surrounded him.

"Welcome home!"

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