The Tyrant Billionaire

"Will there be such plans for the new casino?" Giannini asked.

"Of course. However, using the resources of the TV station and proxy betting company requires additional payment. The management team will negotiate with ABC Television and the proxy betting company at that time," Hardy said.

Giannini looked at Hardy and thought, this young man is indeed a cunning fox. The management team is you, and ABC Television and the proxy betting company are also yours. You negotiate with yourself, and all the money ends up in your pocket. Your calculation is truly shrewd.

The old man checked the time and said to Hardy, "I walk in the garden every afternoon. The sun is lovely today. Shall we go for a walk?"

"Sure," Hardy said, standing up.

They walked out of the house and into the large garden. The garden extended to the hills at the back, with no end to the grassy fields.

The old man waved to a servant nearby, and soon the butler brought a box. The old man opened the box and took out two pre-trimmed cigars, handing one to Hardy.

"Would you like one?"

Hardy took the cigar, smiling. "Davidoff, this cigar became famous because of Churchill."

"That's right. I like this flavor."

They lit their cigars and walked slowly forward. The people around them didn't follow but spread out to guard, staying at least thirty meters away.

"Hardy, do you know about our American Bank?" Giannini asked.

"I know a bit, mainly the publicly available data," Hardy said.

The old man smiled and said, "The American Bank now has over 400 branches across every city in the country. Last year, our customers reached 5 million, and the bank's total assets amounted to $11.6 billion."

Total assets are not market value. The American Bank's market value is about $2 billion now.

"We have also invested in several companies, such as Wells Fargo, Lockheed Corporation, Litton Industries, and Northrop Grumman. These are all military companies, and I believe they have a bright future."

Hardy thought, they do indeed have a bright future. In the future, Lockheed will become the world's largest arms dealer, Northrop Grumman the second largest, and Litton Industries the fourth largest in the U.S.

"The American Bank has also invested in other banks, such as the Bank of San Francisco, the Los Angeles City Bank, and Wells Fargo. We are also involved in insurance, mining, metal smelting, and agricultural products. Including all our partners, our scale has exceeded $20 billion."

The old man played a little trick here. He said "scale" instead of "assets." If it were assets, it wouldn't reach $20 billion. According to the information Henry gave him, the California consortium's total assets are just over $8 billion.

Some companies may have impressive names, but their scale isn't large, with total assets of only a few million to tens of millions.

However, in this era, companies with assets of a few million or tens of millions are already considered significant.

After saying this, the old man seemed to want Hardy to digest it for a while, taking a puff of his cigar and exhaling through his nose.

"Hardy, are you interested in joining us?" the old man finally asked.

Hardy knew that the walk was just an excuse, and the real purpose was to avoid others hearing their conversation, as their discussion could involve significant investment projects that could be affected if leaked.

On his way here, Hardy had already guessed that the California consortium might want him to join, and he had made up his mind.

The California consortium developed after World War II and wasn't as powerful as it would be later. It was still in its early formation stages. Joining now would be like getting in on the ground floor.

All his industries were on the West Coast, naturally aligning him with the California consortium. Not joining would mean facing more difficulties in development and possibly clashing with the consortium.

Joining the consortium had many benefits. The primary goal of a consortium is to integrate resources. The California consortium almost monopolized most industries in California and the West Coast. With the consortium's support, his future development would be much smoother.

Of course, his industries would also have to benefit others.

This is a mutually beneficial relationship. No one can take all the benefits alone.

For example, the construction of the Las Vegas casino, which requires over a $100 million, would need construction companies from the consortium, as well as large amounts of cement, steel, and wood all available within the consortium. It would also need decoration companies, which the consortium had.

Using resources within the consortium would be cheaper than finding outsiders. If funds were insufficient, he could delay payments for a while or seek bank loans to bridge the gap.

With trustworthy construction companies, both he and his partners would benefit. This is the essence of resource integration. Within this group, it would be challenging for outsiders to intervene, creating a monopoly in certain environments.

Of course, joining the consortium isn't easy. One must reach a certain scale and be useful to the consortium.

And Hardy had what the California consortium highly valued.

ABC Television.

It had quickly become the highest rated television station in the country. The consortium highly valued its promotional power. Consortium development relies on promotion, and influencing Washington and supporting their people would be impossible without it.

The consortium wanted ABC Television to become its mouthpiece.

HD Security Company, initially unnoticed, had now become the largest security company in the country, with American Bank as one of its clients.

The consortium valued its power, not just its profitability.

Las Vegas casino, known for being a moneymaker. Hardy's casino further solidified this belief. Entering Las Vegas required Hardy's consent.

Before Hardy, Las Vegas was controlled by the mafia. Now, with Hardy allowing others in, it presented a golden opportunity for wealth.

Consortiums crave money.

Capitalists are crazy for money.

And Hardy controlled the underground forces in Los Angeles, one of the two most important cities in California, along with San Francisco. A king of the underground world, with his destructive potential, was well understood by Giannini.