Chapter 18: Groundwork
Despite their celebration and joy, they all still understood that there was no such thing as free generational wealth. David may have streamlined it for them, but the timeline of events was too fast for the type of project they were undertaking.
"That must be why there's a 100 billion dollar operational cost budget. Call everyone you know, hire anyone who could be remotely helpful to this endeavor," one of them said after they managed to calm down a bit.
It was one thing to celebrate a projection that was almost impossible to fail due to its overwhelming backing, and it was another to work for that projection. David didn't think much of how the team would achieve it; all he knew was that they had 12 months to capture 15% of all sectors across Asia.
Was it impossible? Yes, but with the budget, the type of backing, and his authority, it was very much achievable.
"Today was really helpful to me; thank you," David said as he reached the car, with Mr. Obi escorting him.
"No sir, we have done nothing. Instead, we should be thanking you for this opportunity."
"I see. With how eager they all are, I'm sure this venture will be successful, though I'm putting you in charge of stabilization. With the joy I heard back there, they may lose themselves and forget to build a stable foundation. Do that for them," David said.
David had a feeling this part would be the greatest issue later. Acquiring the determined amount wouldn't be a problem—the challenge would come from consolidating the power they just gained.
"I understand, sir. I will do my best," Mr. Obi replied, bowing in appreciation.
"I believe you will… Oh, and before I go, I'd like to change schools… Someone advised me not to give anyone the chance to look down on me, so how can I be Chairman of Continental with a background like Uniport?"
"I don't think it would matter much, sir, but I will look into it."
"Thank you. Oh, and since we're launching Continental Asia first, try to find one in that area. The better the reputation or the more elite, the better," David said as he got into the car.
"I will look into it, don't worry, sir," Mr. Obi said before closing the door.
"Wait, ensure that 5% of total holdings, as agreed, go to the Trust Fund in my family's name. I want the documents related to that on my desk later," David said in a serious tone.
His goal was to create generational wealth for his family, and he could technically achieve that now by simply creating a 10 billion dollar Trust Fund in their name. However, why do so when he had a company that would be worth trillions in the future? His plan was simple and straightforward.
Continental Asia alone, when successful, would be worth about 1.2 trillion dollars. Five percent of that would yield a monthly dividend of around 800 million to a billion dollars—an amount that would grow as Continental continued its expansion to other continents, potentially reaching around 39 to 53 billion dollars per month.
This would last longer than any basic monetary trust he could create.
"I will do that soon."
"Thank you," David said before the car drove off.
Mr. Obi stood there, watching the car speed away, wondering what he had done to deserve such luck.
He was a wealth manager, used to dealing with huge amounts of money, but none of that money had ever been his. Yet just twenty minutes of talking, and he would soon be able to touch that amount of money and say it was his.
With a giant smile on his face and a new goal in mind, he returned to the conference room.
Finding everyone already at work, he picked up his phone and joined them. Each of them understood one thing: for the plan to work, more people were needed.
Meanwhile, David could be seen pulling up in front of his house. He didn't have much else to do today, as the main objective for the day had already been achieved.
"Welcome, sir!" George greeted him as he entered the house.
"Thank you. Are they back yet?" David asked.
"Not yet, sir, and I have informed Mr. Obi to prepare accommodation for them as you requested," George replied as they walked into the house.
"I see. Thank you," David replied, heading straight to his bedroom to change.
Following George's advice, he had arranged a separate car for them to use, allowing him freedom when he wanted to leave.
With everything set up, David picked up his laptop and got busy. Continental wasn't the end of his plans.
By the end of the five-year period, Continental would be worth at least over $6 trillion dollars, and that was before reaching full maturity. Profits earned from all that would also be around a trillion dollars or even more, factoring in high tax rates and reinvestment.
He didn't want such a large amount of money to sit somewhere gathering dust. He had to set up plans for how to spend it and still had a huge amount of money left to lay the groundwork for that.
After deducting everything budgeted for the creation and success of Continental, he had about 270 billion dollars remaining, which he intended to put to use.
However, before that, he had an estate to develop… Thinking about it now, David felt it was time to build an impressive reputation.
Even though he had only seen such a life through TV and his phone, he knew that the life of the rich depends on their reputation.
If Continental had a good reputation from the start, then things would go smoothly. But if it didn't, he would have to brace himself to fight against public opinion.
"Living without money, you worry; even after you have money, you still worry… This life really doesn't balance at all," David thought as he rubbed his forehead to ease his headache.
He had been awake all night researching the best ways to make things work. He wasn't good at a lot of things, but he was an expert at studying—even his grades showed that much.