Chapter 877: Stealing Food from the Tiger's Mouth

The Bank of England is subordinate to the UK Treasury. The governing body is the Court of Directors, which is composed of the Governor, Deputy Governors, and sixteen Directors. It is the supreme decision-making body, and its members are recommended by the UK government and appointed by the Queen.

The Court of Directors is required to meet at least once a week.

This time, in order to calm the turmoil in the financial markets, the Bank of England is preparing to select the most appropriate plan to minimise the impact of the bankruptcy of the Bahraini bank.

All members of the council are present as the fate of the Bahraini bank hangs in the balance.

In the conference room of the Bank of England headquarters building, the eighteen council members sit around an oval table, each with a stack of documents in front of them.

Webb-site, the Governor of the Bank of England, sitting at the head of the table, picked up a document and said aloud, 'This is all the proposals we have received from potential buyers. Let's read them all and then discuss the results.'

Without saying a word, the others silently began to go through the proposals in front of them.

For a while, all that could be heard in the meeting room was the sound of breathing and the rustling of paper.

Webb-site, who had already read all the proposals, quietly observed the changes in the expressions of the people sitting around him, and from time to time a thoughtful expression appeared on his face.

'Clap!'

Time passed slowly. Sensing that everyone had finished reading, Weber Baster clapped his hands to attract everyone's attention.

'Everyone has finished reading, so please express your opinions.'

As soon as Weber Baster finished speaking, a director in his sixties immediately said, 'I think Barclays Bank's proposal is the best. Moreover, with Barclays Bank's strength and reputation, as long as it takes over Barclays Bank, it can resolve the crisis as quickly as possible...'

Weber Baster nodded noncommittally, without expressing an opinion, and looked at the others.

Weber Baster was well aware of this director's network of connections, which was hardcore Rothschild.

Under normal circumstances, Barclays Bank was indeed the best receiver, but who made it all predetermined?

Now it was just a formality, and he needed to make the process as legal and compliant as possible, that's all.

'I don't think Barclays is suitable to take over. Barclays and Barclays Bank have too much overlap. If it is allowed to take over Barclays Bank, it will have to lay off most of its employees, and unemployment in the financial industry will rise sharply. I think Lloyds's plan is good. Moreover, Lloyds has been readjusting its development strategy in recent months, and overseas capital has shrunk significantly. Barclays's cash flow may not even be as good as theirs.'

'Moreover, if Lloyds Bank merges with Barclays Bank, it will also promote healthy competition in the financial industry,'

Another director, clearly representing the interests of Lloyds, retorted.

'I think HSBC...'

The directors each expressed their own opinions, but none of them gave way, and the meeting room gradually filled with a sense of tension.

Weber Baxter remained silent throughout, taking it all in.

Seeing that they had all danced around enough, he gave a subtle wink to the vice president sitting to his left.

The vice president's eyes flashed, and then he patted the table and raised his voice, saying, 'Everyone, quiet down for a moment, so that the other directors who haven't spoken yet can express their opinions.'

The directors who were arguing gradually quieted down and looked around at the directors who hadn't spoken yet.

One director sitting at the end sat up straight, cleared his throat, and said, 'I will express my personal opinion, without any personal emotional factors.'

'I think that proposal number nine is the most appropriate.'

Some of the directors were taken aback, and immediately pulled out Proposal No. 9. When they saw the party taking over, their hearts sank, and they looked sharply at the director who was speaking so eloquently.

'The consortium formed by the Rock Foundation, Jiuding Bank, Guangming Foundation and Black Rose Capital Company has promised that after taking over, it will inject one billion US dollars in assets into Bahrain Bank in the form of LME copper futures and LME aluminum futures contracts plus cash, which can immediately resolve Bahrain Bank's bankruptcy crisis.'

'Everyone can see the situation in the futures market right now. Even if there is money, it is still difficult to help clear the Bank of Bahrain's position. Of all the plans, only the consortium in plan 9 has the ability to do so.'

'The consortium led by the Rocker Fund taking over Bahrain Bank is currently the best solution.'

As soon as he finished speaking, the first director to speak up for Barclays Bank immediately said, 'Jefte, everyone knows that Bahrain Bank will go bankrupt because of the Rocker Fund and Guangming Fund. Although Bahrain Bank is currently under our control, the Bahrain family's influence on Bahrain Bank still exists. Are you sure the consortium led by the Rocker Fund can take over smoothly?'

'Furthermore, Black Rose Capital is unknown in the capital market, while Jiuding Bank is a Hong Kong company. The consortium led by the Rocker Fund does not have much experience with banking elites, and I don't think they are suitable to take over Bahrain Bank.'

A director named Jie Fu Te immediately argued: 'The collapse of the Bank of Bahrain was a sudden event. Being stuck in the futures market and suffering losses are the biggest problems. As long as these two problems are solved, the Bank of Bahrain can get out of the quagmire quickly. Since the consortium led by the Rocker Fund can quickly solve these two problems, how is it not suitable?'

...

For a while, the meeting room was filled with arguments again, and more and more directors got involved, and the meeting room was in a mess.

At this point, Weber Baster, sitting at the head of the table, frowned, slammed his hand on the table, and shouted, 'Okay, have you got any manners?'

Everyone arguing was startled, and seeing Weber Baster's frowning eyebrows, they could only hold back their annoyance and wait quietly for the next move.

'It seems that you won't come to a conclusion until the afternoon. In that case, let's choose the plan in the most democratic way, a show of hands, multiple votes, and the majority rules!'

As soon as these words were spoken, several people's faces changed, and they were anxious but unable to speak.

Weber Baster ignored them and moved directly to the democratic voting process.

'Raise your hands if you agree with proposal number one!'

'Three!'

'Two!'

'One!'

'OK, there was only one vote in favour, pass!'

'Raise your hands if you agree with proposal number two!'

...

Weber Baster quickly carried out the voting process, not allowing anyone else to exchange views in secret.

'Raise your hands if you agree with proposal number nine!'

As soon as he said this, eight directors raised their hands in a flash, most of whom had been ignored because they had not spoken before.

However, they suddenly raised their hands, which made proposal number nine stand out immediately. The other directors who had expressed their positions before suddenly looked unhappy and realised that something was wrong.

Just then, a scene that surprised them happened.

They saw the vice president slowly raise his hand.

Then the president, Weber Baster, also raised his hand.

The number of votes in favour reached ten, directly exceeding half of the votes!

Three directors who had originally voted realised something was wrong and, after a moment of hesitation, raised their hands again.

The number of votes in favour reached thirteen!

Weber Bauster counted the votes expressionlessly and said, 'Thirteen votes in favour of proposal nine, passed!'

'Raise your hands if you agree with proposal ten!'

...

The voting continued until proposal sixteen, when it was all finished.

The interesting thing was that after proposal nine, no one raised their hands in favour of the proposals that followed.

'The results have been counted: 13 votes for proposal 9, 4 votes for proposal 4, and 3 votes for proposal 5.'

'Inform the consortium led by the Irok Fund that they are ready to take over Bahrain Bank.'

Weber Baster immediately gave the order, not giving anyone else a chance to question him.

The proposal had been democratically selected, and the meeting was being photographed and recorded throughout. He was not afraid of anyone questioning him.

Even if some people guessed in their hearts that there was a problem, so what?

Procedurally, there is nothing wrong with it. He is completely defensible, and even if he stabs the Ministry of Finance, he will not be scared.

Thinking about the origin of the plan, the name Black Rose Capital Company flashed through Weber Baster's mind, and he secretly thought, 'What's more, even if someone stabs the Ministry of Finance, I believe it will not lead to anything.'

After the meeting ended, several directors left in a hurry, but Weber Baster ignored them and ordered someone to get ready to hold a press conference.

...

'How is that possible?'

Upon hearing the result, Jacob Rothschild's face changed, and the veins on the old hands holding the armrest of the stool bulged, clearly showing how furious he was.

'Mr Rothschild, this is the situation, and there is nothing I can do. This is the ninth plan I have brought with me. Take a look. I have things to do, so I will leave first,'

said the director of the Bank of England Council, who represented the interests of the Rothschild family, with a sigh. He put down the plan in his hand and then got up to leave.

He felt bad for not being able to help, and he didn't want to sit there.

'Although the result is unsatisfactory, I still have to thank you for your hard work. I won't see you off, and we will have a good chat next time we meet,'

said Jacob Rothschild, trying his best to calm down as he got up.

His cousin Evelyn Rothschild walked out to see the person off.

After watching the figure disappear, he sat back down, his gaze fiercely scanning over Proposal No. 9.

After reading it, his gaze fixed on Black Rose Capital.

He knew very well that the Bright Foundation and Jiuding Bank were not yet capable of doing all this, and although the Howard family's influence was astonishing, they would not necessarily win against the Rothschild family.

However, today's meeting at the Bank of England was clearly dominated by Weber Baxter.

There were not many people in the UK who could influence this, and the sudden emergence of Black Rose Capital, which even he was unfamiliar with, was the most suspicious.

'Evelyn, we lost this time, we were careless! This is an absolute disgrace!'

Jacob Rothschild said angrily to Evelyn Rothschild, who had returned to the living room and sat down.

Evelyn Rothschild was angry and felt a great sense of regret. Such a large bank as Baring Bank had been robbed of its prey.

They worked so hard, but they didn't even get a single hair, this kind of failure and being slapped in the face was very rare for the Rothschild family in the past, and it was definitely a disgrace.

But now that it's happened, there's nothing to be done.

He just can't bear to lose so confusedly, at least he wants to know why he lost!

Evelyn Rothschild took a deep breath and said, 'Jacob, I'll go check the background of Black Rose Capital to see who has such great power!'

Jacob Rothschild did not say much, but nodded to show his attitude.

After Evelyn Rothschild left, he looked to the east, his gaze seemingly piercing the castle and space and fixed on the magnificent palace.

'Could it be...'