With the financial support of Goldman Sachs and Second Brother Li, the Merchant Bank became one of the top ten large banks in Hong Kong.
It was different from the large banks in Hong Kong. The large banks in Hong Kong generally had a minimum deposit limit. If the deposit was less than 10,000 RMB, there would be a monthly fee.
But the Merchant Bank did not have this restriction. It was free to open an account and removed the so-called cost of production, which was common all over the world.
At the same time, there was no collateral, and the bank could still get a loan based on their salary.
This opened up a new model of small loans. It had the same business concept as Grameen Bank, but according to local conditions, it created a completely different business model.
If the Merchant Bank really followed the model of Grameen Bank and targeted the real poor rural women, the Merchant Bank would not be able to survive for long based on China's agriculture problems.
The Merchant Bank's small loans were loans for individuals or families. Its main service targets were China and Hong Kong. It mainly served agriculture, small and medium-sized foreign trade enterprises, and office workers.
The amount of loans was generally less than 200,000 RMB and more than 1,000 RMB.
Many banks did not approve of this model of the Merchant Bank and treated it as a joke. They were more inclined to give a one-time loan of tens of millions to hundreds of millions to large enterprises. They did not deny that small loans could be profitable, but small loans required much more manpower than expected. It was a complete waste of time.
Even Goldman Sachs did not agree, but Li He was a major shareholder, and they did not invest much. In the end, they did not take this seriously and acquiesced.
The first thing the Merchant Bank did in Moscow was to spend 3 million USD to acquire Ukraine's Delta Bank, which was on the verge of bankruptcy. This bank only had debts and no assets. The only redeeming feature was that it had branches all over the capital of Ukraine.
Because it had up to 20 million USD in debt, no one had been interested. Only an idiot would take over a bank like this.
But to save time, Li He immediately agreed when the Merchant Bank's staff reported to him. On one hand, the Ukraine government was eager to get rid of the bank and would not set up obstacles to facilitate the acquisition. On the other hand, it was not easy to find such a well-equipped bank. Of course, there were good banks, but it was not up to him.
The Merchant Bank had long been well-known in the Chinese business world. This time, the branch was set up in Moscow, and it naturally attracted many Chinese to come to borrow money. The Merchant Bank also increased the loan conditions.
After these Chinese people got the money, the first thing they did was to go to the train station to pick up the goods from the Chinese people who delivered the goods. 10,000 cans were sold in one day. Jackets and knitted sweaters were easily sold off.
These hardworking Chinese were helping the Soviet people get new clothes and shoes.
While the Commercial Bank is lending, it is also learning from European and US banks. It continues to borrow rubles from the market and sell them for other countries' currencies.
The Soviet Union had been turned into a warehouse of oil, natural gas, timber, and military technology. They could only use these resources to exchange for underwear.
When they needed coupons to buy a pair of socks, the people finally started to shout, "This is the end of the Soviet Union!"
People lined up in front of state-run shops in the heavy snow.
They used to be passionate supporters of the reform, writing posters and handing out flyers, but this was the outcome …
They couldn't believe that freedom was like this.
They couldn't believe that they had shed blood in the war, but they were still as naive as children.
In December, the temperature in Moscow was already below zero. From November onwards, the daily maximum temperature in Russia dropped below freezing point. Speaking of whether Moscow's winter was cold, the Germans and French had the most say. Napoleon and Hitler had fought against the Russians one after another, but in the end, they were defeated by the weather that made them cry but have no tears.
It was common for people to freeze to death, especially for some homeless people.
Li He was most afraid of the cold. With his character, he was not willing to go out. He wrapped himself up like a bear and was drinking tea in the hotel lobby. At the same time, he was listening to reports from others and occasionally gave some instructions.
Suddenly, some people rushed in from outside and shouted in Russian. Then, the people in the hall all had frightened expressions on their faces. Some of them even didn't dare to believe it.
Li He couldn't understand what they were saying. At this time, some Chinese people ran in from outside and shouted. "The Soviet Union is finished! The Soviet Union is finished! "
"Gorbachev is live on TV."
Li He turned and asked Tie Hefei, who was crying. "What day is it today?"
Tie Hefei, like many people, was crying, but he wiped his tears and said. "December 25th, sir."
Someone moved the TV out of the hotel room and turned on the TV. Ge Tu's speech had already started.
"We opened ourselves to the world and gave up interfering in other people's affairs and the use of foreign troops in exchange for trust, unity, and respect.
"Our country and its citizens have gained the freedom to choose their own path of development. “
"The exploration of democratic reform of the federal system has led us to reach a consensus on the establishment of a new Commonwealth of Independent States. These changes have brought us great anxiety. This anxiety is accompanied by the growing resistance from the old forces in various sharp struggles. "
This meant that the Soviet Union had disintegrated. The Soviet Union was really finished.
Many Soviets, no, it should be called former Soviets, had different expressions. Some were happy, some were indifferent, some were crying, and some were struggling. The more extreme ones had fallen into a state of madness. They were shouting in the lobby.
Li He asked Tie Hefei. "What are they saying?"
The Soviet Union disintegrated. Although Li He was already mentally prepared, when this day really came, he still could not believe it. He also did not understand why Tie Hefei and even Matych, who was behind him, were crying.
Tie Hefei said. "They scolded the President as a secret agent of the United States. He betrayed his country. They hate the President. They said the President stole their motherland."
Li He asked. "Not your motherland?"
Tie Hefei said. "No, sir, I don't know. I was taught since young that I am a Soviet, and I should love the Soviet Union. But later I realized that I love Georgia more. I hate the Soviet Union, but now the Soviet Union is gone. Sir, I don't know. I really don't know."
He took out the Soviet Union passport from his pocket and looked at it carefully. He then put it back into his pocket. "But I treat it as my most precious gift."
"Go out and take a look." Although it was cold outside, Li He still wanted to see it for himself. The descent of the Soviet Union's red flag. He also told Ding Shiping to bring the camera. He wanted to be a witness to history.
There were people in twos and threes on the Red Square. They were either Moscow citizens out for a walk or tourists from other places. No one cared about the flag, and there were no large number of media reporters with cameras and flashing lights rushing to the scene.
Two workmen climbed out of a trapdoor in the roof of the green dome of the Kremlin, lowered the red flag of the hammer and sickle, and folded it up like waiters folding a tablecloth.
Li He stood in the middle of Red Square and took a photo the moment the flag dropped. History was frozen at that moment.
The Soviet Union was dead. It was like the Qing Dynasty. It died in silence. Even the sighs were given by the later generations.
An era had come to an end. People went their separate ways. The era was in turmoil and the unknown.
That year, the Soviet Red Army attacked the Yellow Dragon, captured Berlin, and forced Hitler to commit suicide.
Without the Soviet Union to liberate Europe, De Gaulle would still be hiding in North Africa, and Churchill would still be in a hole all day.
The birth of the Soviet Union awakened China.
The development of the Soviet Union guided China.
The strength of the Soviet Union helped China.
The threat of the Soviet Union sharpened China.
The demise of the Soviet Union warned China.
Li He could not find another teacher as good as the one from the Soviet Union.
He prayed to the Soviet Union in his heart. Don't come back.
On December 26, 1991, the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union passed a resolution announcing the cessation of the existence of the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union's parliament was dissolved. Representatives said goodbye to each other and went their separate ways. Since then, the Soviet Union had become history. 15 republics, 20 autonomous republics, 8 autonomous prefectures, 10 autonomous regions, and 129 borderlands were divided into 15 countries after the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
The world was in a frenzy.
It was only then that Li He realized that the war between the West and the West to poach Mao Xiong had just begun.
On the morning of the 27th, Li He went to the embassy and found that the name of the embassy had changed. It was China Embassy in Russia.
This New Year, Li He couldn't go back. He didn't know how to explain it to He Fang.
On the other end of the phone, Li Lan's voice became louder, and his words became clearer.
"I'm sorry." He really felt very guilty.
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