Chapter 1303: The Five Largest Banks in Austria

1. The Austrian government must assist Guangming Fund in acquiring an Austrian bank.

2. The Austrian government must introduce a series of policies, including: (1) tax relief for investors investing in the stock market; (2) the government must require government social security and welfare funds and insurance companies to enter the stock market...

3. The Vienna Stock Exchange needs to reform the stock market system, and Bright Fund needs to acquire a portion of the equity.

4. Promote the listing of 20 large Austrian companies within six months.

There are only four major conditions, but these four conditions have put Ulysses Meulen in a difficult position.

'President Berkeley, you have too many conditions, and they are very difficult for us to implement,' Meulen said with a bitter smile.

George Berkeley shook his head with a faint smile and said, 'It seems very difficult, but in fact it is achievable for the Austrian government. It all depends on whether you are willing to do it.'

'It has been sixty or seventy years since the end of World War I, and Austria still does not have a successful capital market. This already shows the difficulty of creating a capital market. If you can do it, there is no need to ask for my help.'

'Now we have proposed the prerequisite conditions after research. If the Austrian government cannot provide these for me, our company will not dare to take this risk.'

'Mr. Meinl, the choice is yours. I don't have to do it.'

Ulysses Meinl was silent, his brow furrowed, as he struggled with his decision.

In fact, he wasn't angry. George Berkeley had a point. It was the Austrian government that was asking for help, and George Berkeley had gone to the trouble of setting out the conditions, proving his sincerity. The ball had been kicked back to him, and the choice was indeed in his hands.

It's just that this ball is too hot to handle!

After much thought, Ulysses Myron made up his mind.

He looked at George Berkeley with a burning gaze and said sincerely, 'President Berkeley, I can feel your sincerity, and I am very willing to cooperate with you. I have no problem with your conditions.'

'But I think you understand that this matter is beyond my authority, and I need to report it to the higher-ups for discussion and research.'

'So, for the four conditions you have proposed, could you explain them to me in more detail, so that I can convince my superiors of the need for them?'

George Berkeley smiled and nodded: 'Of course, that's what I should do.'

'Then I'll start with the first condition.'

With that, he sat up straight and assumed the posture of a formal negotiation.

Ulysses Meulen instructed Troy Wopaul, the chairman of the Vienna Stock Exchange sitting next to him, 'Troy, you are responsible for taking notes.'

'Yes!'

The chairman of the stock exchange, a dignified man, could only fulfil the role of a secretary at this point, and obediently took out a pen and notebook to prepare to take notes.

Seeing that they were ready, George Berkeley began to expound his views.

'First, I need the Austrian government to assist us in acquiring a bank. The starting point is simple: our company needs huge amounts of capital to activate the capital market and play a leading role in the middle and later stages.

'Our company is strong, but the main funds will only be invested in the UK, West Germany, France, and the United States. The funds that can be invested in Austria will be relatively small. With insufficient funds, we need bank funds to amplify the effect, otherwise we cannot achieve a scale effect.'

'Secondly, only if we have acquired a bank and are in control, can we fully cooperate with the Austrian government and provide financial support to investors, quickly expanding the Austrian capital market.'

'To achieve this effect, we must acquire a large Austrian bank.'

After saying this, George Berkeley paused first, waiting for Troy Walpole to take notes.

After a while, Troy Walpole nodded slightly to Ulysses Meulen, who threw out the question he had just been thinking about: 'President Berkeley, your reasons are logical. Have you screened out suitable candidates for the bank to be acquired?'

George Berkeley nodded and said, 'Of course, I have made a preliminary selection and there are five acquisition targets.'

'They are the Central Cooperative Bank of Austria, the Austrian Credit Union Bank, the Austrian Remittance and Credit Bank, the Austrian Central Savings and Commercial Bank and the First Austrian Savings Bank.'

These five banks are the top five banks in Austria.

Among them, the Central Cooperative Bank of Austria, the largest private bank in Austria, was established in 1927 and provides commercial and investment banking products and services to individuals, multinational corporations and financial services providers. In essence, it is an investment bank, and the biggest boss behind it is the Rothschild family. The current chairman is List Rothschild, head of the Austrian branch of the Rothschild family.

The second Credit Union Bank of Austria, the third Creditanstalt Bankverein and the fourth Zentralsparkasse der Österreichischen Landesbanken are all banks in which the Austrian government holds a stake, and the shareholding ratio is above 50%.

The fifth largest bank, the first Austrian savings bank, is also a bank with private joint ownership. It was established in 1819 and is very old, but due to operational strategy issues, it has relatively few customers, only about 600,000, which is less than one-tenth of the Austrian population.

Ulysses Myron nodded and said, 'Okay, I understand. I will report to the higher-ups.'

After saying this, he glanced at Troy Walpole again and saw that the latter was already taking notes, so he let out a sigh of relief.

After some deliberation, he found that the first condition set by George Berkeley seemed difficult, but in reality there was a lot of room for manoeuvre. The three state-controlled banks could sell one without causing any harm.

He just didn't know if the higher-ups were as determined as they claimed.

'President Berkeley, please continue.'

George Berkeley continued, 'The second condition, in fact, cannot be said to be a condition, and can be seen as a supplement to the plan you have formulated.'

'The first of these is tax relief for investors, which can be subdivided into post-tax deductions and pre-tax credits. As long as investors invest their business profits and personal acquisitions in the stock market, they will enjoy tax exemptions. In this way, investors will actively find ways to make their money active, rather than depositing it in the bank. Although the government will receive less tax revenue, the benefits of capital investment will definitely make up for it, and the positive impact will be even greater.'

'Secondly, the Austrian government's social security and welfare funds, as well as insurance companies, have huge cash flows. If they can be invested in the stock market, they will act as ballast stones, giving investors unparalleled confidence. The pie of the capital market will definitely expand rapidly, and investments will also appreciate in value. In fact, the benefits far outweigh the drawbacks.'

'For specific results, you can refer to the practices of the United States and the United Kingdom, which have achieved remarkable results.'