No. 186 The Power of Finance

After seeing off the three people and leaving the Prime Minister's Palace, Constantine sat on the sofa and fell into deep thought.

"Your Highness, what are you thinking about?" Alexandros asked.

Constantine, who was interrupted, said "Huh" and responded: "I'm a little surprised at the speed of development of these three major banks. They can raise 300 million in funds to purchase treasury bonds. According to this data, it is estimated that the three major banks The capital under its control is at least 900 million, and Greece’s finance has developed to this point.”

Constantine's main energy was mostly spent on the political and military aspects of Greece. He had never cared much about Greece's finance. Suddenly, several Greeks came over and said that they could take over the national debt of 300 million drachmas. This made Constantine Constantine was mentally unresponsive.

"It is naturally a bit difficult to rely on the Greek market alone. However, coupled with the Congolese market, it is completely possible, isn't it?" Prime Minister Alexandros said with a matter-of-fact expression.

"After the last war, Greece was able to win against the Ottoman Empire. This actually exceeded many people's expectations. This brilliant victory gave the financial market great confidence. At least people had doubts about whether Greece could win in the Balkans. The survival of this restless region is no longer in doubt."

"So, after the war, the three major Greek banks actively explored the Congolese market, fully entered the Congo, and initially established a transnational banking system. Deposits in the Congolese region can be withdrawn from branch banks in Greece, and vice versa."

“In addition, the three major banks have used their deep relationships in Greece to obtain a lot of privileges from the Congolese government. They have a hot relationship with the Congolese government. As far as I know, Congo’s tariffs are currently stored in the three major banks in Mata. Dee’s branch bank”

"In addition, the branches of the three major banks in various parts of the Congo have close relationships with local powerful people, such as the chiefs of various tribes, and help them deal with property or investment," Alexandros said of the three major banks' operations in Congo. Things in Congo seem to be clear.

"During your last visit to Congo, didn't your Highness decide to implement the policy of drachmas as legal tender in Congo? Don't forget that the three major banks in Greece now have the right to mint money. From this income alone, the three major banks How much profit can the bank get?”

"Every drachma circulating in Congo will bring them a profit. This is a market with a population of about 20 million. Even if the indigenous Africans are barbaric and uncivilized, this is a broad market. From this aspect , well, Congo is to Greece what India is to Britain,” Alexandros gushes about the benefits the three major banks have received in Congo.

Having said this, Alexandros shrugged: "Although this may not be ethical, when Greece, a country with a population of less than 4 million, obtained the management of Congo, in a sense, we have actually Completed the accumulation of capital”

"In fact, when Greece first acquired the Congo, the population was only about one million. Half of the credit for Greece's current development rate can be attributed to the Congo."

Sure enough, colonization is the way to get rich quickly, Constantine sighed.

"The confidence brought by victory in the war is also very important. After the last war, many Greek businessmen invested in Greece. This created an upsurge among Greek businessmen in Europe to return to Greece to invest. At present, the stock market of the Athens Exchange continues to rise, and the funds of overseas Greeks play a major role. As the three largest banks in Greece, they all have securities trading companies, and they have also benefited a lot," Alexandros said excitedly, his face flushed. light, appear radiant.

Constantine held his chin with his right hand and said thoughtfully: "In other words, confidence allows money to quickly gather into the Greek financial industry. As long as Greece can continue to win, every victory can make Greece’s financial sector has grown by leaps and bounds”

After that, the two took a carriage and headed to the school grounds in the suburbs at the invitation of Arms Minister Giannis.

The carriage carried two people. In front of the police post at the gate, the driver showed his ID to the armed guards, and then drove the carriage into the school grounds.

The so-called school field is a bare wasteland, covered with withered and yellow weeds as far as the eye can see.

Seeing the two people arriving at the scene, Giannis hurriedly walked forward and greeted Constantine and Alexandros.

After that, he led the two people to the demonstration venue, guiding the way and introducing the situation to them again and again.

Giannis pointed to a strange-looking tractor in the central open space where more than a dozen staff members were watching. It had three wheels in a U-shape, with a bare steel wheel in front and two crawler wheels in the back.

A 75mm cannon was towed behind the tractor. When the tall chimney of the tractor evaporated black smoke and made a "click-click" sound, the two rubber tires of the cannon made a "squeak-squeak" sound as it was pulled forward. action.

"This is a new type of tractor produced by the tractor factory in imitation of the American Holt Company's tractor. The crawler structure makes it easier for such a tractor to operate in the field," explained Giannis.

"So far, the three tractors sent for inspection have performed very well. With a strong power of 35 horsepower, they can easily tow a 75mm artillery."

"According to professional estimates, this weird-looking tractor can also be used to carry artillery shells, gunners and tools."

Andros, who was standing around the tractor and observing its performance, saw Constantine and the Prime Minister rushing over, and walked forward with a happy face: "Your Highness, the crawler tractor performed well, and we will soon be able to officially mass-produce the army's orders"

After announcing the good news, Andros looked hesitant, and Constantine asked: "Anything else?"

Andros hesitated for a moment and said: "It's like this, Your Highness, our company's tractor business is currently on the right track, and the development is very stable. I have a new idea"

Originally, how the tractor company operates the company has nothing to do with Constantine, and Andros does not need to report the company's movements to Constantine.

However, Constantine has made a lot of efforts in the investment of the tractor company, and the tractor factory can develop to the present, benefiting from the Greek government's concern for this heavy industry company, which is rare in Greece. His next development strategy has certain risks, so he needs to report to Constantine.

"Your Highness, I plan to let the factory try to produce cars." Gritting his teeth, Andros told Constantine what he was thinking.

Constantine frowned upon hearing this, feeling somewhat unhappy.

In fact, it is impossible for this tractor factory to operate smoothly, relying solely on the small Greek market. At present, the annual output of this factory is only more than 1,000 vehicles. Due to its scale, the production cost cannot be reduced, and a considerable part of the parts need to be imported. The entire factory actually has very limited profits, and it can only barely repay the bank's interest.

Even so, it is the result of Constantine's mobilization of resources from all aspects. After all, Constantine has his own calculations for this tractor factory.

"What's the reason? Andros" Constantine asked puzzledly.

"Your Highness, Greece has a small area of ​​arable land. Even if tractors can indeed replace manpower and greatly improve agricultural production efficiency, Greece lacks a large area of ​​flat land and the tractor market is small, which has led to the slow increase in the production capacity of the tractor factory. In the foreseeable future, I don't see any hope of changing this situation," Andros explained.

"A few days ago, several staff members from the Athens Stock Exchange came and said that if our factory is willing to enter the automobile and motorcycle fields, they can help the factory to go public for financing. As the tractor market is already saturated, I think this is a good opportunity. At present, throughout Europe, automobiles and motorcycles are popular emerging industries, and I also think it is profitable," Andros said sincerely.