Chapter 1061: Bright Foundation

Bright Foundation is now arguably one of the giants of the British capital world.

Of course, Xia Yu is referring to real assets, because many assets have been treated, so the outside world's perception of Bright Foundation is a notch lower.

But even so, Bright Foundation is one of the capital giants, and no one in the UK dares to belittle it.

In terms of real assets, the strength of Bright Fund is now concentrated in four areas.

The first is the investment sector, which is the foundation of Bright Fund. Relying on Xia Yu's farsightedness and the strong execution capabilities of people like George Berkeley, Bright Fund is very well-known in the investment field, and its strength is not bad, whether it is short-term investment, long-term investment or short selling.

It has large sums of money operating in the stock market, futures market, and foreign exchange market.

The futures market and foreign exchange market are basically short-term operations with relatively few representative assets, but the stock market has more things that reflect strength.

For example, in the insurance sector, it holds 5.1% of Prudential Group, 5.1% of Fortis Insurance, and 5.1% of Aviva Group. These three insurance companies are among the top three in the UK insurance industry, and Bright Fund has a seat on the board of directors.

Another example is the energy sector, where it holds a 6.5% stake in Centrica, which operates gas networks, a 6.2% stake in Southern Scotland Electricity Company and a 5.9% stake in National Grid, all of which are also giants in the UK electricity and energy sectors.

In addition, it also owns a 5.3% stake in the chemical giant Unilever and a 6.3% stake in HSBC Holdings, the parent company of Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, and both have a seat on the board.

This shows how influential it is...

The second is the media sector, where the Bright Foundation is a giant in the UK and even the European media industry.

In the UK, it owns the Financial Times Group and the Mirror Group, controlling six national newspapers, 53 local newspapers, 96 weekly magazines, and 123 other bi-weekly and monthly magazines.

Six of these national newspapers, including the Financial Times, the Daily Telegraph, the Daily Mirror, Sports Life, the Sunday Daily Mirror and the Sunday People, have a circulation of over a million copies each issue, accounting for 32% of the national newspaper market.

Local newspapers also account for 8% of the local newspaper market in the UK.

In the field of British television broadcasting, the United Television Company, which holds 31.2%, owns 13 private television stations and 67 local radio stations. It also holds a 35.4% stake in Clyde Broadcast, the second largest radio broadcasting equipment manufacturer in the UK.

In addition to the UK, the Mirror Group also owns 177 newspapers and magazines in the United States, Italy, Spain, etc., an increase of 82 over the previous two years, all of which were acquired.

A special mention should be made of France, where the Mirror Group's French subsidiary is also a French film and television media giant. It owns 59 newspapers, with the flagship newspaper, 'Le Figaro,' ranking first in daily sales in France. The entire company's newspaper circulation accounts for 28% of the entire country.

The Mirror Group's French subsidiary also owns Pathé, France's second-largest film company, and is also France's largest cinema and distribution company, with 238 cinemas and 269 screens.

The third area is heavy industry, represented by Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, now the largest car group in the UK. It has sold well all over the world with its explosive models, and its strength is unquestionable.

The fourth major area is banking, with an 84.6% stake in Standard Chartered Bank, 58.9% in the Royal Bank of Scotland, 22% in the Hua Xia Bank, and 20% in the Bahraini Bank, both overtly and covertly.

Outside of the four major areas, there are also some scattered but not insignificant assets, such as a 15.3% stake in Coca-Cola USA, a 13.4% stake in The Walt Disney Company, a 7% stake in BT Group, a 4% stake in BP, and the largest auction house Sotheby's.

The final statistics show that the actual value of the entire Bright Fund has exceeded 6 billion pounds!

Considering that it controls the Standard Chartered Bank and the Royal Bank of Scotland, which have huge assets, the assets directly or indirectly controlled by the Bright Fund have exceeded 20 billion pounds, which is equivalent to more than 100 billion Hong Kong dollars.

In Hong Kong, the Bright Fund is second only to the Jiuding Consortium in terms of strength.

In the UK, the Bright Fund can also just barely squeeze into the ranks of the large consortia, and it can be called the Bright Consortium, which is qualified to compete with those top-level old consortia in the UK.

...

After reading through the information, Xia Yu looked at his watch and realised that he had spent nearly an hour reading it.

However, he was very pleased with the results.

Unbeknownst to him, he had already built such a large foundation in the UK, and it was all high-quality assets with enormous influence and potential.

Even if the Jiuding Consortium in Hong Kong were to disappear completely, the Bright Foundation alone would be enough to pass down the family business for hundreds of years!

'George, well done, the company has developed very well under your management!'

Xia Yu praised George Berkeley, saying:

'George Berkeley, you've done a great job. George Berkeley modestly said, 'Boss, it's mainly because you planned well, and I just followed your instructions and carried out my duties normally.'

Xia Yu laughed and shook his head, saying, "I can see your hard work and achievements. I'll give you a surprise at the end of the year!'

George Berkeley's eyes flashed with a look of expectation, and he said gratefully, "Thank you, Chairman, for your recognition!'

After chatting for a while, Xia Yu asked George Berkeley about the situation in France.

'George, tell me about the latest situation in France.'

George Berkeley pondered for a long time, and after organising his thoughts, he began to speak: 'Boss, as you instructed, I have been collecting market information on all industries in France. After so much hard work and improvement over time, I have basically collected it all, but I have not been able to collect any more insider information for the time being. The information is stored secretly at my home.'

'Then there is the contact with Mitterrand, which has always been relatively close. He has not neglected our relationship just because he has become the President of France.'

'As far as I know, Mitterrand has complete control of the cabinet and the parliament. The Socialist Party is now dominant, and at the government level, his will and orders can be fully implemented.'

'Mitterrand is now in close contact with various French families and consortia, exchanging interests in the hope of gaining the support of these families and consortia for him, so that government policies and directives can be effectively implemented.'

'It seems that the situation is quite complicated at the moment.'

'Mitterrand advocates gradual structural reform of the French economy through a certain degree of nationalisation, planning and self-management, without eliminating private ownership, in order to establish 'democratic' and 'free' 'French-style socialism'.'

'He now intends to strengthen state intervention in economic life, emphasise economic planning, and expand nationalisation, which will seriously damage the interests of capitalists. Therefore, the attitude of the major French families and consortia towards Mitterrand is very complicated.'

'However, I have talked to Mitterrand, and he himself expressed confidence in the government's ability to implement its policies. He also plans to start the reform of nationalisation with the banking industry, which is the lifeblood of the major French consortia and families.'

'As for how it will be implemented, he just told me that he doesn't have a clear plan yet, and it is currently under research...'

'That's the specific situation.'

After saying this, George Berkeley quietly looked at Xia Yu, who was in a state of deep thought, waiting for his instructions.