I changed the world.

Page 408

From the 14th century onwards, bankers and merchants from the Lombard region established their businesses on a main street southwest of Redfield, the capital of Rune, laying the foundation for Rune's banking industry. This street was then known as "Loan Street," almost becoming synonymous with Rune's financial market. Over time, this street flourished, with Rune banks, the headquarters of major commercial banks, merchant banks, branches of foreign banks, discount banks, stock exchanges, insurance companies, Lloyd's of London specializing in marine insurance, as well as gold, foreign exchange, and commodity markets all concentrated on this street and its surrounding area, forming the world-renowned "Financial Street."

At the intersection of Financial Street and the adjacent Donghe Street stands a plain-looking nine-story office building. Every morning at seven o'clock sharp, Carteris Vincent would appear in front of this office building on time, a habit he had maintained for two years. He adjusted his tie, glanced back with a complicated look at the noisy construction site across the street, where a new tenant was currently being renovated—reportedly a newly established fund company.

The economy has been booming for decades, a level of rapid economic development rarely seen in history, to the point that many people have become accustomed to high economic growth. This economic growth has led to a booming stock market, giving rise to numerous fund companies that manage assets for clients from all walks of life.

Because of the added benefit of making money, it is not difficult for fund companies to raise funds nowadays. As long as there is a "star fund manager" with a gimmick, and some "professional" self-media to promote and publicize, they can quickly package a glamorous "elite private equity". In fact, the long-term bull market has also brought these funds good returns.

There are many precedents of predecessors; many professionals working for large companies have switched jobs to start their own businesses after gaining experience, which has led to a rapid increase in the number of new funds established in recent years. As a result, land rents near Financial Street have continued to rise, so much so that many newly established small funds have turned their attention to the streets adjacent to Financial Street, where prices are relatively cheaper. Many clients unfamiliar with the surrounding area also mistakenly believe that these are institutions with offices on Financial Street.

It seems another new agency is entering the industry… Carteris Vincent looked at the construction site across the street, which was under renovation, and couldn't help but think of the scene when he left his job two years ago. Then a smile crept onto his face. This truly is the best of times…

Good morning, Mr. Vincent.

After passing through the security gate, a subordinate who was waiting for the elevator not far away greeted him politely. At this moment, the elevator opened, and the subordinate reached out to hold the elevator door, smiling respectfully, waiting for him to go in first.

Carteris Vincent casually raised his chin in a greeting as he walked towards the elevator, feeling quite pleased with himself. This was the taste of success…

The elevator stopped on the 5th floor. Stepping out, the wall opposite prominently displayed the words "Beyond Equity Income Fund" in large gold letters. This was a private equity fund established just two years ago, managing a pool of funds exceeding 30 billion runes, which was already quite considerable for a newly established fund.

However, this is far from the scale that Carteris Vincent envisioned. He and his partner, Sean Collins, had previously analyzed the current economic situation, noting that while the stock market was at historical highs, humanity was experiencing an unprecedented technological explosion, especially since decades of technological development had reached a critical point of "leapfrog" development.

As staunch supporters of Professor Stephen O'Connor's "technological leap" theory at the University of Santa Fe, the two often share this view with their clients: human development is not smooth but rather pulse-like, meaning that most of the time it is in a "gathering" phase. When certain scientific and technological developments reach a critical point and some necessary technologies achieve breakthroughs, then the scientific and technological developments that were previously in the "gathering" phase will transform into the driving force for "leap," propelling human development to a "leap forward."

Volume Two: The Truth Hidden Behind History Books: Chapter 835 Big News!

History provides ample evidence to support this point. For instance, the invention of horses, saddles, stirrups, and wheels contributed to the rise of nomadic empires. Furthermore, advancements in navigation, shipbuilding, and geographical knowledge facilitated the discovery of new sea routes, leading to the Age of Exploration…

Currently, the most important development opportunity for mankind in the past three hundred years—deep space exploration—has undoubtedly reached the moment of imminent "leap." Past technological advancements are about to be transformed into tangible benefits. At this juncture, only those who get on board now can enjoy the huge dividends that are about to come!

In the eyes of the two partners of "Beyond Equity Income Fund," their fund will also ride this wave to become a truly large company with assets of tens of billions in the future! And they will become truly "big shots" in the financial district and even the entire Luen region.

He strode into his office, closed the door, glanced through the large glass window at the mostly empty seats, frowned, pulled down the blinds, and then sat down at his desk and picked up his phone…

"Hey... Miss Winnie, bring me yesterday's data..."

Soon, there was a knock on the door, and Caterpillar Vincent called out, "Come in."

A blonde, blue-eyed girl walked in carrying a document: "Mr. Vincent, here is the document you requested."

“Okay, put it here.” Carteris Vincent said, reaching out to stroke the other’s firm buttocks.

The girl gave him a flirtatious wink, put down the documents, and gracefully walked out.

Thinking of the girl with Theresian heritage and her lithe and powerful waist, Carteris Vincent felt a surge of warmth in his heart. However, there was no time to do anything at the moment. He planned to book a restaurant after get off work today; the newly opened seafood restaurant seemed like a good option… Carteris opened the file as he did so.

The fundraising for the fund has been going very smoothly recently. As a result, the company has just started planning the launch of a new open-ended fund. After seeing the more than 5000 million raised in a single day yesterday, Carteris Vincent nodded in satisfaction. The company's brand has begun to spread, and some of the old customers who have made money in the past have also given considerable support to the promotion of the company's new products. Some customers have invested almost all of their assets.

As he was reviewing documents, the door opened. There was only one person in the company who would enter his office without knocking: his partner, Sean Collins. The middle-aged man with brown hair walked in with a smile: "Buddy, why did you leave so early last night? I had a hard time dealing with all those beauties by myself..."

"Haha, you guys can really drink! I had to sneak out." Carteris Vincent smiled back. Unlike his usual stern, elite image in the office, many fund professionals often have a wild time in private because of their high salaries and highly competitive work environment.

“Sean, look, this is yesterday’s data.” Carteris Vincent smiled and handed over the document he had just been looking at.

Sean Collins' smile faded, and he quickly scanned the document, glancing at several key metrics. His smile returned: "The data is very good. Our new fund is growing rapidly in terms of the number of new members."

“Yes, the number of people in the existing funds that are still operating is also growing.” Carteris Vincent nodded. “These past few days, we have been taking advantage of the deep market correction to increase our holdings of deep space concept stocks. With some promotional efforts, many clients are also eager to invest their money, wanting to catch the fast train of buying low.”

“A wise choice. Not to mention the clients, I even mortgaged my own property to invest.” Sean Collins snapped his fingers: “This is like picking up money. When the news of the successful jump of the experimental spacecraft comes, the entire deep space exploration sector will usher in an unprecedented boom.”

“You’re right, those cowards will regret it,” Carteris Vincent agreed with a smile. Then, he changed the subject: “Sean, I think that based on the current growth trend, we can consider going public by the end of this year.”

“Yes, based on our current data, our core business is fully in line with the listing requirements. I’ll contact my former colleagues at Andy Harkland Bank later…” Sean Collins said, walking to the window and looking at the clear sunlight outside, he smiled and said, “This truly is the best of times!”

“That’s right, this is the golden age!” Carteris Vincent laughed as well.

Just as the two partners of the fund company were confidently envisioning the future, there was another urgent knock on the office door.

“Come in,” Carteris Vincent said, frowning.

"No...no good! Mr. Vincent! No good! Ah...Mr. Collins is here too, no good...both gentlemen...no good!!!" A male clerk with obvious Eastern Continent facial features rushed in, his face filled with panic, and he stammered.

"What is it? Explain yourself." Even Sean Collins frowned and looked at his subordinate.

"Gentlemen, just now... just now a big news broke online, it said... it said..."

“What is it?” Carteris Vincent couldn’t help but urge.