Sure enough, a few days later, Argent Real Estate Group took action.
"Due to rising raw material prices and other additional factors during construction, we currently need an additional £300 million in funding."
On the board of directors of Argent Property Group, their CEO said:
"The bank can only add an additional £150 million in loans, and the remaining £150 million funding gap can only be met through financing."
Currently, Barron holds a total of 20% of Argent Real Estate Group's shares, of which the family trust fund holds 15% and DS Industrial Investment Company holds 5%.
As a result he holds two seats on the board of Argent Property Group, of which Baron himself and Amber Sheehan are both members.
But even so, the Butt family still holds a strong position on the board of Argent Real Estate Group - the support their family can get exceeds 50% of the shares.
"For this round of financing, our existing shareholders will make corresponding capital contributions and take out a portion of their shares to seek new investors to join."
Viscount Bute, chairman of Argent Real Estate Group, explained to Barron:
"It is because the additional loans from the bank are no longer able to cover the funds we need. The shortfall cannot be met by shareholders increasing capital, so it is imperative that new investors join."
The entire King's Cross renewal plan will be a super project with a total cost of more than 11 billion pounds, including the renovation of two stations and the renovation and construction of public facilities and welfare facilities. The government's investment will be around 8 billion pounds.
The investment in Argent Real Estate Group's own properties will exceed 3 billion pounds, most of which will be completed through bank loans, and they will also need to come up with a certain amount of funds themselves.
Of course, these funds are used for the renewal plan of the entire King's Cross area, not a one-time expenditure.
The renewal plan for the entire King's Cross area will last for nearly 20 years. It will not be built simultaneously in all areas, but will be divided into several phases.
Each stage is commercialized immediately after construction is completed, with the newly built buildings being sold or rented out. Those buildings that are rented out can also bring in new loans to support the next stage of development.
Therefore, in the current first phase, the original plan was to invest 500 million pounds to carry out the project, but due to various reasons, the current funding requirement is as high as 800 million pounds, so an additional 300 million pounds of funds are needed.
This is why Argent Real Estate Group needs to continue raising funds this time.
"Of course, according to the original agreement, Your Highness, you can also provide the corresponding funds to ensure the proportion of shares you hold."
Facing Viscount Bute's words, Barron frowned slightly:
"You know, I'm acquiring O2 recently, so I'm a little tight on funds."
"I can understand that. Even if the shares are slightly diluted, there is still a huge increase in assets. Our plan is to use the additional 20% of shares to exchange for at least 200 million pounds of capital. By this calculation, the valuation of Argent Real Estate Group will reach 1 billion pounds. Even if you stop investing, your shares will only increase from 20% to 16%, with a value of 160 million pounds, which is at least five times the value of your original corresponding assets."
What Viscount Bute said was not wrong. Although in fact after the financing of Argent Real Estate Group, if Barron no longer invests, the proportion of shares held will drop to 16%, but the corresponding assets will still increase several times.
But the problem is that this will not be the last round of financing for Argent Real Estate Group. If it happens a few more times, Barron's shareholding will soon be reduced to below 10%, and his influence on the company will be almost zero.
This is also a kind of open conspiracy. The party with sufficient funds can "wash" other shareholders in the company into small shareholders in this way, thereby firmly controlling the company.
"Or should I provide the group with the £200 million?"
Viscount Bute's surprise flashed across his face when he heard Barron's words. However, seeing the joking expression on the young Duke's face, he asked,
"Are you serious, Your Highness?"
"Maybe, but then I'd have to give up on buying O2, which is very difficult."
Barron shrugged and said:
"But the increased lending from banks is enough to sustain the economy for a while, right?"
"But eventually more funds will be needed. We can't wait like this because even if new investors join, negotiations and investigations are required."
"That's it for now, Mr. Booth. I'll think about it and give you an answer as soon as possible."
Just like that, watching Barron leave, Viscount Butt's face became a little uncertain.
…
While waiting for changes in international oil prices, Barron encountered not only the financing of Argent Real Estate Group, but also changes in the acquisition of Manchester United Club shares.
"Our total shareholding in Manchester United has increased to 8%. However, in recent days, Manchester United's share price has also fluctuated a bit. We found that some people are secretly acquiring shares in the market..."
Daisy told Barron that in addition to DS Capital, there are other funds currently investing in Manchester United Club shares.
Through investigation, it was found that the other party is an investment institution called Red Football LLC. However, it is not yet known whether the other party is making a financial investment simply because it is optimistic about the development of Manchester United Club, or whether it also has the idea of acquiring the club.
Red football?
Hearing the name of this organization, Barron raised his eyebrows slightly. He knew that this company should be the one registered by the American Glazer family to acquire Manchester United Club.
Looks like they've finally started to arrive...
"Can I know how much stock they have bought now?"
"Through the analysis of the data, they should have just started buying, and they are definitely far from the 5% shareholding ratio that requires a placard. According to the stock trading volume and price fluctuations in the past few days, I am sure that their shareholding is far lower than ours, and should be less than 1%."
Hearing this news, Barron felt relieved and said to Daisy,
"Keep an eye on them. My intuition tells me that this Red Football LLC is not a good company and is likely to become our competitor."
"They also want to buy Manchester United?"
"I will ask someone to investigate and find out more information, but I think that's their goal as well."
Now most of Barron's funds are invested in shorting crude oil futures. Neither Argent Real Estate Group nor Manchester United Club can take any further action. They can only wait for the oil price to reach the psychological price before taking any action.
After returning to his office, Barron stretched his body. Things all came together. The acquisition of O2 was still under negotiation. At Argent Real Estate Group, the Butt family started to make small moves again. At Manchester United Club, the Glazer family also appeared as if in the original time and space, ready to disrupt the situation.
Just as Barron was thinking this, a pair of hands were placed on his shoulders. Feeling Barron's body tense, the other party said gently,
"Your Highness, let me massage you."