The Rise of Australasia

As long as one understands the nature of capitalists, it’s clear that Franz Josef Papp would surely compromise.

The development of the story was as expected, Franz Josef Papp quickly handed over all the shares of BMW, and he even actively helped Australasia to attract German talent.

For Franz Josef Papp, earning enough money to prevent his company from going bankrupt was the most important thing.

As for whether Germany’s talent would be lost, what did it have to do with him?

Acquiring BMW was just one aspect of Australasia’s actions in Germany. In addition to BMW, in May, Australasia also acquired Maybach Cars and Maybach Engine Factory, Porsche Car Factory, and so on.

All these enterprises became renowned in later generations as either part of the World Top 500 or as high-profile enterprises famous within certain industries.

But at the current time, their prices were mostly bargain-level, and the total cost of acquiring these enterprises didn’t even exceed 30 million Australian dollars.

Apart from these German enterprises, Australasia also had its gains in other European regions.

I’ll leave aside the less famous enterprises for now, but among the well-known ones were Maserati Car Company, Rolls-Royce, and Bentley Car Company, among others.

Most of these enterprises were wholly acquired, which meant they had become industries of Australasia.

The first step in acquiring these industries was, of course, to relocate their headquarters to Australasia.

Let’s not talk about the other effects yet; the jobs provided by the relocation of these enterprises to Australasia were enough to prompt Arthur to make this event happen.

If these enterprises could develop to the extent they did in later generations, the contributions they would bring to Australasia’s economy were immeasurable.

In fact, Australasia could even hope to become the country with the most World Top 500 companies in later generations, and their tax contributions alone would make the government wealthy.

Of course, the controllers of the enterprises were still the royal family, and it was the Australasian royal family that would become richer.

The government would take the taxes, the royal family would take the dividends, and the People would get stable and high-paying jobs, meaning threefold happiness for Australasia.

It’s worth mentioning that at present, the majority of Australasia’s acquisitions are engine and car enterprises.

This is actually understandable. First, car enterprises are greatly affected during an economic crisis.

Second, compared to essential chemical and heavy industries, car-related industries are dispensable for European Nations, and they do not hold the same strategic importance. ℝâꞐȮᛒƐʂ

Although the results of the car enterprise acquisitions were substantial, Arthur was somewhat disappointed.

After all, Arthur’s most desired acquisition targets were Germany’s chemical industry enterprises, which could help Australasia quickly catch up with Britain and the United States in heavy industry and chemical sectors, at least not being so far behind.

If relying on its development alone, the time to close the gap could stretch to several decades.

But if it could take over Germany’s chemical industry, this time might be shortened to just a few years, which would greatly benefit Australasia’s actions after the economic crisis.

However, Arthur’s disappointment did not last long, as on June 11th, 1927, Australasia welcomed unexpected guests.

These guests were from Germany’s famous enterprise, the Pigment Industrial Group Corporation. This name might sound unfamiliar, but in later generations, it had a more resonant name—the Bayer Group.

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The Bayer Group specialized in pharmaceuticals and agricultural chemical products, and was a giant in Germany’s chemical industry, having quite a reputation in Germany.

Australasia’s acquisition efforts had previously visited the then Bayer Group, but were met with a polite refusal from its head, young Bayer.

This was normal, after all, the Bayer Group was at least a renowned chemical conglomerate in Germany and was not like those small and medium-sized enterprises that easily faced the risk of bankruptcy.

The arrival of the Bayer group was met with a personal reception from Arthur, who had some guesses about young Bayer’s personal visit but still needed actual probing to know the true intentions of Bayer Group.

"Honorable King of Australia, Your Majesty, on behalf of the Bayer family and Pigment Industrial Group Corporation, I extend to you our most sincere greetings," young Bayer said to Arthur with great respect and sincerity when they met.

"Hello, Mr. Bayer," Arthur said, nodding his head calmly, signaling young Bayer to take a seat.

"May I inquire about the purpose of your company’s visit to Australasia? Could it be to restart the acquisition plan for your company?" Arthur asked, narrowing his eyes.

"Not at all, Your Majesty," young Bayer began to explain, "Although we have been hit by the economic crisis, there are no significant issues with our funds at the moment, and we appreciate Your Majesty’s concern.

Our purpose for coming here, in fact, is to establish a branch factory in your country and expand our business."

"Establish a branch factory?" Arthur’s interest was piqued, and he inquired as if indifferent.

"Yes, Your Majesty. As you know, our main business is in pharmaceuticals and agricultural chemicals, both of which can fall into significant traps in an economic crisis."

"After our examination, Australasia is the least affected country by the economic crisis and is also the most suitable for our research in pharmaceuticals and agricultural chemicals."

"Therefore, I would like to reach a collaboration with your country and build a branch factory in Australasia to expand our business," young Bayer continued to explain.

In truth, no matter the industry, companies and enterprises can only barely maintain operations in the face of an economic crisis.

Because an economic crisis affects all aspects of a country, not just the industry and economy, but also grain, population, and medical education, among others.

While the current size of the Bayer Group is still quite large, it is unfortunately located in Germany, where the economic crisis is relatively severe.

Countries like the United States and the United Kingdom are still better off. Despite a more serious economic crisis, these nations’ governments can forcefully intervene.

Germany is different. As a defeated nation in World War I, there are many aspects of its own affairs that Germany cannot control.

Even the stock market must take into account the opinions of other countries. Of course, more importantly, several major powers within Germany are vying for influence, and the government does not have strong control over the stock market.

Additionally, the shifting of the crisis by Britain and France has caused Germany to endure an even more severe economic crisis. As such, although a large-scale company like Bayer Group hasn’t suffered too severely, the impact is still there.

Compared to continuing to endure the economic crisis in Germany, young Bayer was more inclined to seek opportunities in Australasia.

If he failed, at most he’d lose a branch factory, but if he succeeded, it would be a contribution comparable to creating the Bayer Group anew.

After all, among all countries not affected by the economic crisis, Australasia is the closest to Western culture and systems, even a purely Western nation.

Countries like Turkey, although also not affected by the economic crisis, are smaller in size and too culturally and systematically different for young Bayer to consider.

Knowing young Bayer’s intention, Arthur silently nodded in his mind, but his outward demeanor was still nonchalant as he spoke, "These matters should be discussed with the Ministry of Industry and the local government. Australasia is vast; if there’s any particular area you’re interested in, you should directly contact the regional state government or City Council."

"You need not worry about policy issues; whether domestic or foreign enterprises, as long as they comply with the laws of Australasia, the government treats everyone equally."

Currently, it is Bayer Group that wishes to expand its business in Australasia, so Arthur definitely holds the initiative.

Facing the future chemical industry giant Bayer Group, Arthur definitely does not want to let them slip away.

Especially since Australasia has significant deficiencies in the chemical industry, and Bayer Group is one of Germany’s chemical industry giants with extraordinary achievements in this field.

How to coax Bayer Group into moving their headquarters to Australasia? That would be a test of Arthur’s control over human hearts.

"Although this is the case, Your Majesty, we still need your assistance when building the branch factory," said young Bayer, slightly embarrassed.

Previously, when Australasia took the initiative to reach out, Bayer outright rejected the offer.

But now, having to ask for assistance, this situation akin to being slapped in the face made young Bayer slightly embarrassed.

Fortunately, the skin of a capitalist is exceptionally thick; after all, it’s for their own benefit, so losing face doesn’t really matter that much.

"Let’s hear it, Mr. Bayer." Seeing that the other party had initiated the conversation, Arthur stopped pretending and directly asked for conditions.

"Your Majesty, we need policy support, as well as a loan of at least 1 million Australian dollars," young Bayer gritted his teeth and stated his demands, "We shall establish a branch factory in Australasia, second only in scale to our German headquarters, with complete chemical research laboratories, biological labs, and pharmaceutical plants."

"To express our gratitude for Your Majesty’s assistance, we are willing to employ a large number of Australasians, and gift you 20% of the shares in the branch factory."

Young Bayer was indeed paying a steep price. First, the money Bayer Group borrowed from Arthur was inescapably a debt they had to repay.

Those thinking of cheating Arthur out of money simply did not exist—first, they had to contend with the hurdle of Australasia itself.

Moreover, the armed forces at Arthur’s disposal were no pushovers. The intelligence personnel of the Royal Security Intelligence Agency would enlighten anyone trying to cheat Arthur out of money about what God and heaven looked like.

Young Bayer borrowing 1 million Australian dollars in the name of the branch factory also meant that the initial market value of the branch was over a million Australian dollars.

And by gifting Arthur 20% of shares, he was effectively giving Arthur assets worth 200,000 Australian dollars.

Furthermore, according to young Bayer, the Australasian branch would undergo extensive construction to reach a level just below the German headquarters.

This meant that the value of the 20% of shares in Arthur’s hands would keep growing, essentially giving Arthur a small-sized gold mine for free.

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