Chapter 853 Hidden Dangers
The current situation is of course an excellent opportunity for Natixis Bank to acquire Commerzbank.
If it can acquire 25% of its shares in Commerzbank from the German government, Natixis Bank's shareholding in this bank will reach 34%, becoming its largest shareholder, thus controlling German commerce bank.
Of course, as president of Natixis Bank, Lagarde’s goal is to facilitate a merger between Natixis Bank, France’s third largest bank, and Germany’s second largest bank, which will make the combined bank one of Europe’s one of the largest banks and gain access to a wider market and higher synergies.
But the most important thing among them is the attitude of the German government - Barron knew that in his previous life, the German government successively sold part of the shares they held in Commerzbank, eventually leaving Only half of the shares are placed, which are also prepared for eventual sale.
But in 2024, when UniCredit, Italy's largest banking group, prepared to acquire Commerzbank, it was not accepted by the German government.
Of course, the situation now is different from that time. After the same time and space, the situation of Commerzbank has improved greatly, so there is no need to sell it-except for the government to reduce its stock holdings at a high level to make profits. beyond the will.
But now Commerzbank has not recovered from the impact of the subprime mortgage crisis and has a considerable proportion of non-performing assets.
Coupled with the subsequent European debt crisis, the debt rights of many European countries purchased by Commerzbank were in danger.
Now, the German government's stake in Commerzbank is seen more as a liability than an asset.
If Natixis Bank can acquire Commerzbank, it would be a way to save the bank.
In addition, there is another point, which is the relationship between Lagarde and the German government...
This year’s French election, around the world and outside France, I am afraid that the German Prime Minister will silently Kerr was the one most concerned about the outcome.
Because in the previous European debt crisis, Sarkozy and Merkel represented France and Germany respectively, and they cooperated relatively well.
Before the election, Hollande made many remarks about "France needs to re-examine its responsibilities in the euro zone countries", which made Merkel a little uneasy about this.
After all, France and Germany are the two core countries of the Eurozone. Solving the European debt crisis depends on the cooperation of the two countries. If the new French government changes its attitude at this time, it will definitely not be an expected result for the euro. .
Therefore, now that Lagarde, who has had tacit cooperation with Germany, has become president of Natixis Bank and is promoting the French bank's acquisition of Deutsche Commerzbank, I am afraid that after the change of leadership in France, there will be a need for cooperation between Germany and France. When the tacit understanding is re-established, the German government will more or less need to consider the negative impact that rejecting the merger will have on the relationship between the two parties.
The German government has such concerns, which is what Barron wants to see. This creates a good opportunity for Natixis Bank to acquire Deutsche Bank.
……
“When we were testing the test vehicle of the TYPE electric coupe, we found that the battery cooling system had safety hazards and the entire system needed to be further improved. This may The official release date of TYPE will be postponed..."
When Barron returned to London, he received such news from the British Automobile Group.
Jaguar Motors, a subsidiary of the British Automobile Group, has used their research and development results in electric vehicles to prepare to launch an electric coupe TYPE at the end of this year. According to Jaguar's internal investigation, the safety hazard discovered this time occurred in the battery cooling device.
In order to cool down the battery, TYPE’s battery cooling system installs a coolant pipe outside the battery. However, because the aluminum material used in the end connection fittings is soft, during use It is easy to wear and crack, causing coolant leakage, causing the battery to short circuit or even catch fire.
It is also because of the discovery of such safety hazards that Jaguar needs to cooperate with the Electric Vehicle Technology Center of the British Motor Group to find alternatives to avoid such accidents. Therefore, it may not be able to release the scheduled new models. Time to launch.
In fact, the main electric vehicle technology framework adopted by British Automotive Group on Jaguar TYPE is almost the same as Tesla's Model S - after all, the electric vehicle R&D centers of both parties can share the results of research and development.
After the discovery of this safety hazard, British Automotive Group also discovered the same problem on Tesla Model S...
“We have notified Tesla of this safety hazard. However, they have not made this public yet.”
In June this year. On the 22nd, Tesla delivered the first batch of 100 Model S to users. Thanks to the funds Tesla obtained before, it accelerated the transformation of the Fremont factory in California, and the delivery speed of Model S was faster than the original time and space. , Tesla is expected to complete the delivery of more than 3,500 Model S this year.
From now on, it seems that Tesla is going to choose to keep this issue secret.
In Barron's previous life, there were reports that Tesla had discovered safety hazards in the Model S's battery cooling system long before the Model S was delivered, but they still chose to deliver as planned and did not immediately respond. Solve these problems.
After all, although there are safety risks, the failure rate is not high. Because it has been under great pressure in the research and development of Model S and is eager to deliver the vehicle, Tesla still made such a choice.
However, unlike Tesla, which is still a "newcomer" in the automotive field, Jaguar itself is already a well-known car brand. Now that such a hidden danger has been discovered, it is naturally impossible to choose to take risks. After this problem is solved, the TYPE electric coupe will be released.
“This is the right thing to do. For us, we are not in a hurry to enter the field of electric vehicles. At present, users in this field still need to be cultivated, which can leave us enough time, but if safety risks arise , this is fatal to our brand..."
"Then Tesla..."
Barron understands what Vandal Hauke, CEO of British Automotive Group, means.
On the one hand, British Automotive Group is the major shareholder of Tesla. After the smooth delivery of Model S, Tesla’s share price has risen slightly. Its share price currently exceeds 34 US dollars. If Special If the safety hazards of Tesla's Model S are exposed, it will definitely have a great impact on its stock price and will also cause the British Automobile Group to suffer losses.
On the other hand, when Jaguar launches TYPE, it means that the British Automobile Group will enter this track. Postponing the release of new models in order to solve safety risks will also be their concern. Positive publicity that consumers are responsible for, especially compared to Tesla...
“There is no need to interfere too much in their decision-making. As for the safety hazards found in TYPE’s test vehicles, let’s keep this matter secret for the time being. .”
(End of this chapter)