Zhao Chen stood in front of Floor-to-Ceiling Window, and the clouds above Hudson River outside the window were very low.
He swiped his finger across the phone screen and pulled out the number Elon Musk.
The phone rang twice and was connected.
"Zhao." Elon Musk's voice came from the other end of the receiver, with a slightly rough texture that comes from being pressed to the ground and rubbed repeatedly for this period of time, but it was not discouraged at all.
"Morgan Stanley, you saw the research report of 10 US Dollar.
Muddy Waters and Citron are still raising bets, and Short Sellers is betting that Era Vanguard will be liquidated.
I have added a round of cash pledge of 300 million, and now there is still a safety margin before Liquidation Line.
But Short Sellers won't stop, they need a complete victory."
In the brief silence on the other end of the phone, one could vaguely hear the echo of the keyboard and some kind of metal workpiece being placed on the workbench.
Until the voice of Zhao Chen rang again, firmly nailing every word into the silence shared by both ends of the phone:
"You and I must support Tesla at all costs.
They want to uproot us with stories about bankruptcies, and we want them to see that,
No matter how much money they spend in this position, there is a bottomless pit under their feet that they will never be able to fill."
"I completely agree, they must be taught a lesson."
Elon Musk replied decisively, and then gave an extremely short response, "I believe you can do it."
There is no unnecessary discussion and no explanation required.
The two made an appointment at Cape Canaveral--
Away from the hustle and bustle of Wall Street, away from the glass curtain wall of Manhattan,
There is SpaceX's Launch Site, the Falcon Rocket recovery platform, and a sufficiently empty coastline.
He hung up the phone and turned back from Floor-to-Ceiling Window.
Zhao Chen just made a phone call to Elon Musk. Shen Zhiyi listened to the whole thing without missing a word, and the weight of every word was extremely heavy.
"Book two tickets and fly to Florida."
After giving the instructions, he immediately called back Lin Shicheng.
Lin Shicheng picked up quickly.
At this moment, what was laid out in front of him was the new round of Margin Call Notice sent by brokers today.
The Wall Street Journal The headline "Leverage Dilemma" on the front page this morning is still eye-catching, and on Bloomberg Terminal is scrolling the ridicule of analysts about Era Vanguard's cash flow is about to dry up.
The reports of Muddy Waters and Citron were like two nails bouncing back and forth, nailing all the funds that wanted to take the opportunity to buy Tesla to the outside.
He reported the information one by one and then got straight to the point.
"The brokerage has issued another warning. The stock still needs to be replenished. Zhao Zong, how much do you think we will replenish this time?"
"All. All the cash in the account, don't keep a penny, use it all to make up for it."
Zhao Chen's voice is not loud, but every word can stand the scrutiny of a magnifying glass.
Lin Shicheng quickly added the balances of all bank accounts of Era Vanguard--
After the previous replenishment, the emergency funds were gradually consumed from more than 400 million at the peak, and currently there are still the last 125 million US Dollar Working Capital left.
"12.5 billion. After all of this is paid in, the pledged financing principal will be reduced from 2.7 billion to 2.575 billion.
Back calculation using the early warning line of 125, the early warning market value is about 3.219 billion, divided by the pledged 16.6 million shares, the early warning stock price is about 194 US Dollar.
Further down, using a 115% discount, the closing market value is about 2.961 billion, and the closing stock price is about 178 US Dollar."
"Even if the pledge is replenished, we are still in danger," he raised his head and interrupted Zhao Chen's words before he could speak.
"This is the last cash we have on hand.
Going further, if you want to avoid triggering the liquidation and continue to be active in the market,
SpaceX's stock pledge financing must be launched."
Zhao Chen did not hesitate and said directly, "Immediately prepare to pledge the equity of SpaceX."
Lin Shicheng's voice showed a firm but cautious hesitation at this time. He put the Fountain Pen that had accompanied him for twenty years Wall Street back on the pen holder, and gently pressed his fingertips on the notebook cover.
"Zhao Zong, SpaceX is a private company, not Listed Company.
Its LLC Operating Agreement has very strict restrictions on shareholder pledges and equity transfers--
The pledge must be approved by Board of Directors, and SpaceX is very sensitive to the company Control.
Unapproved stock transactions have been forcibly blocked many times before, and several large investment institutions even wanted to sell SpaceX shares to unapproved third parties, but they were directly rejected.
This is not an ordinary VC or PE. SpaceX's strict capital control and Elon Musk's sensitivity to shares Voting Rights may be the biggest resistance you encounter at this stage.
We must formally notify SpaceX Board of Directors and obtain written consent documents, and then go to Pledgee to undertake it.
This process cannot be completed in a day or two."
Zhao Chen held the phone tightly, and the corner of his mouth turned into an extremely faint arc.
"You contact Morgan Stanley and start preparing the pledge-related documents and compliance procedures. Board of Directors, I will go see Elon Musk immediately."
Zhao Chen Put down the phone.
Shen Zhiyi on the side has already checked the flight information to Florida on the tablet.
She raised her head and looked at him, her usually clear and decisive eyes still flashing a hint of worry that could hardly be comforted by words.
Era Vanguard added the last 12.5 billion Working Capital to Pledged Shares.
Although Lin Shicheng has split all operations into inactive periods after the market opens,
And through multiple layers of channels, Wall Street never lets the truly weighty information slip under the nose.
At noon the next day, PB Departments from several top brokerages had put the pieces together into a complete map.
The stakes are raised even higher:
Era Vanguard made up three full rounds of pledges, and there were even fractions. This was not Bulls and Bears's firepower reconnaissance to test each other.
It's a sign that the Working Capital they have on hand has almost completely dried up.
Almost no one in the Short Sellers circle can hide their excitement anymore. Some people in the group directly called Era Vanguard "Stainless Steel Water Tower's turn."
They are not afraid that Era Vanguard will pledge SpaceX shares next.
Because there are only a few Pledgees on this front who can take over this non-Listed Company equity, and the interests of these Pledgees and Short Sellerss are highly consistent:
Dragging Era Vanguard to death over Liquidation Line of Tesla would be beneficial to everyone.
No matter which direction you look at it, Era Vanguard looks like a bait that has been pressed on the hook, with only the last bit of rope left before being thrown into the boiling and rolling whirlpool.