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Normally, the shareholders meeting elects the board of directors.

But PayPal is not yet listed.

There are only a few shareholders. The largest shareholder is eBay, and there are also some small shareholders such as Carl Icahn and Ziweixing International. Carl Icahn has roped in those small shareholders to be represented by him.

This board of directors is easy to choose.

Mainly the opinions of eBay, Carl Icahn and Zhou Buqi.

Last time it was a recommendation.

This is the first formal board meeting after reorganization.

Nine people including Zhou Buqi, Boss Ma, Pierre, Thompson, Jonathan, Patrick, and David Moffett were present. Basically everyone who could be there arrived.

The first thing the board of directors does is the selection of chairman.

You can see it from your seat.

At the long table in the conference room, everyone else was sitting in the two rows on the left and right, except for Zhou Buqi, who was sitting at the front and center of the long table.

Those present were either business leaders or core executives of other companies. In the absence of a full-time board secretary to preside over the meeting, Zhou Buqi had no choice but to do it for him. He said with a smile: "Thanks to everyone's trust, from now on, I will Serving as Chairman of PayPal."

This is considered official confirmation.

Everyone applauded enthusiastically.

After the applause, the second thing happened.

The most dissatisfied was Pierre, but he couldn't look too good and had a smile on his face, "We have a board of directors of eleven people, but now there are only nine. David Marcus was in his office, Why don't you call me over?"

Zhou Buqi shook his head, "If he continues to serve as the company's CEO, then it is logical for him to join the board of directors. But now we have a doubt, whether Mr. David Marcus is really qualified to take over the post-IPO PayPal split." CEO position?”

Pierre said: "I think he is the best candidate."

Zhou Buqi said firmly: "No, he is not suitable."

Pierre won't back down, "Marcus has been working at PayPal for several years, he has experience."

Seeing that a quarrel was about to start, Patrick, PayPal's current chief financial officer and a member of the board of directors, smiled and said: "Deciding on the candidate for the CEO is the third thing. The second thing should be to confirm the members of the board of directors. Our specifications are Eleven people, but now there are only nine.”

Zhou Buqi nodded, "Something happened to Steven Sinofsky and he will not join the board of directors."

Pierre secretly laughed.

Sinofsky's exit is behind his operation.

This is where his confidence lies in today's board discussion.

Sure enough, as Zhou Buqi finished speaking, several people's expressions became complicated, as if they had guessed something.

Pierre said with a bit of a smile, "What will happen if he doesn't join? Are we going to find an executive from a company in Ziweixing to serve as a director? The purpose of PayPal's spin-off is to be able to With greater discretion and autonomy, PayPal cannot be separated from eBay and become a branch of Ziweixing."

David Moffitt said fairly and objectively: "That's the reason. I think independent directors should be invited."

He is an old friend of Carl Icahn and was introduced to him by Carl Icahn.

However, this guy is also a big boss in the financial industry. He is not Carl Icahn’s vassal or younger brother. If both plans are reliable, then out of friendship, he will support Carl Icahn, which means supporting Zhou Buqi.

But now it was obvious that Zhou Buqi was being unreasonable.

How can there be any reason to fire the CEO just after becoming the chairman? PayPal should be an independent listed company, not a subsidiary of Ziweixing. What's more, PayPal is in a critical moment now and is preparing to go public! This is not what you would do if you were unloading the mill and killing the donkey!

In the current situation, it is obvious that Pierre's side represents justice, and Zhou Buqi is the villain.

Characters of this level are independent enough.

Just like Sinofsky, a partner in the Elbo project, it is simply impossible to make such a character obey orders. If he had been submissive and obedient, he wouldn't have been fired by Microsoft.

Zhou Buqi's expression was heavy.

Pierre smiled and said: "Maybe we should choose a new director first, I propose..."

"Wait!" Zhou Buqi interrupted him, "I have already chosen."

Pierre smiled slightly and said: "Zhou, maybe everyone of us should be consulted on the selection of this new director, what do you think?"

Zhou Buqi said: "Be patient."

Because today was very important, Ning Yaxian came out as an OL and was sitting in the conference room taking notes. Seeing the look in his man's eyes, he started to take action.

Connect your phone to a big screen and use Microsoft's product Skype's ultra-clear video call.

Under everyone's confusion, the Skype call was connected.

Then, a face that shocked everyone appeared on the big screen.

Ho!

It's Bill Gates!

"Hey, everyone! Zhou, David, Scott, Jason, Pierre, Jack, Jonathan..."

Bill Gates waved and said hello to everyone through online video.

He knew almost everyone present.

Zhou Buqi smiled and said: "Sinofsky withdrew from the board of directors because he was working on a startup project and would be very busy. He recommended Bill to me...well, his name is Bill Gates, and he is the founder of Microsoft. Everyone knows each other, right?"

There was a roar of laughter in the conference room.

Everyone is happy.

Who is Bill Gates?

This is the god of Silicon Valley, a legend like Steve Jobs, and the idol worshiped by every IT person in Silicon Valley.

If he is willing to join PayPal's board of directors, the strength of this board of directors will be greatly increased, and it will even make everyone present feel a great sense of honor.

It is an honor to be on the same board of directors as Bill Gates!

Zhou Buqi could actually invite Bill Gates over...

The way everyone looked at him became more complex and meaningful.

Sure enough, it’s Boss Zhou!

Unusual!

Looking at Pierre again, his expression was a little embarrassed.

It’s over!

Being compared.

On PayPal's board of directors, the most influential ones are definitely Zhou Buqi and Pierre. Although Pierre's industry level is not as high as that of Zhou Buqi, he has controlled PayPal for many years, and PayPal developed in his hands.

This gave Pierre an opportunity to compete with Zhou Buqi in the board of directors.

That's different now.

Bill Gates is here!

Even if Zhou Buqi is the richest man in the world, and even if Pierre has controlled PayPal for so many years, their influence and authority can hardly be compared with that of Bill Gates who has stayed out of the matter.

For example, external directors such as Jonathan Cristolo, David Moffett, and David Dorman will definitely trust Bill Gates in some ambiguous judgments.

This is even more true for outside public judgment.

Their trust in Bill Gates is far stronger than that of others. Zhou Buqi is too young and a foreigner. These two disadvantages make it difficult for him to compete with Bill Gates for fame in the United States at this stage.

Even less so with Pierre.

Zhou Buqi just wanted to suppress Pierre. If he couldn't suppress it himself, he would invite someone who could suppress him. He said with a smile: "I paid a lot of money to invite Pierre out and make him agree." Join PayPal's board of directors. What about you? Do you agree?"

Do you even need to ask?

I definitely agree!

Next, there was thunderous applause again.

This momentum seems to be even more enthusiastic than when Zhou Buqi was officially appointed as chairman just now.