Chapter 43: Ceo (5)
Smith was lost in thought for a few seconds. The offer was so big so audacious it was hard to comprehend. He was a high school student. And this man this strange teacher was offering him the chance to run a national bank.
He was very surprised. He looked at Adam. He tried to see if this was some kind of joke. Some kind of trick. He thought Does this young-looking teacher really have so much money?
Then Smith took a deep breath. He made a decision. He would treat this as a real business proposal. He would not be intimidated. He would not be a child. He would be a professional.
He looked at Adam with a new seriousness in his eyes. "If you don’t tell me the main goal of this bank I won’t be able to work properly," he said his voice now steady and confident. "I need to know the ultimate objective. What is the end game? What are we trying to achieve?"
Adam stood up. He walked to the small whiteboard on the wall of his office.
He picked up a marker. "Think about it Smith," he said his voice now that of a teacher. A mentor. He drew two points on the board. He labeled them ’A’ and ’B’. He drew a straight line connecting them.
"Our own government wants to start a project," he said. "For example a road. A new highway. It has to be built from Point A to Point B." He turned to face Smith. "How does the government fund a project like this? Do you know?"
Smith nodded his head. He was no longer a nervous student. He was a participant in a high-level strategic discussion. "They issue government bonds," he said his voice clear and confident. "They borrow money from the market. From private investors."
"Exactly," Adam said.
"The government invites big businesses in the market. Big corporations. Investment funds. Even big institutions in the international market. And it says ’Put a certain number of your funds here. Invest in our project. And you can take all the profits from this project’. This is the first viable route to power. The first viable influence. By controlling the funding you control the project. You control the lifeline of the nation’s infrastructure." He drew a small dollar sign next to the line on the board.