Chapter 241: Companies Suitable for Establishing Presence in Georgia

"The total length of this route is approximately 430 kilometers. If we're talking about constructing a highway, it would cost around $300 million. Taking into account joint loans, plus your personal assets…"

"At most a hundred million!"

Proceeds from selling the house: $30 million; add the guaranteed $60 million from joint loans; finally, include assets from the Quantum Fund.

"But even with all that, I'd still need to liquidate all my shares in the Quantum Fund just to reach a hundred million."

Carter chuckled bitterly. A shortfall of two hundred million dollars was rather daunting. After all, in today's world, two hundred million dollars had the purchasing power of over a billion dollars in the future.

Did every time traveler have to face such formidable challenges?

With his net worth only in the tens of millions, Carter couldn't help but wonder why he was constantly being pushed into bigger deals. It was giving him a headache. He even entertained thoughts of backing out.

"Well, the remaining gap needs to be filled through financing. You could try leveraging government connections, talk to Columbus over there. They're big enough, so financing should be relatively simple. Maybe Columbus itself is interested in having a road like this."

Jim nodded and then joked, "If the Columbus city government is willing to provide a guarantee, we might even secure a loan exceeding a hundred million."

"Exactly! If we could link so many cities together, I'll immediately report to my superiors and see if FDIC can provide some guarantee. A hundred million? No problem!"

Paterson also nodded repeatedly, following the flow of conversation and encouraging Carter. Deep down, though, he didn't think the feasibility of this plan was very high. After all, he had just casually mentioned Japanese people and Japanese companies. Who knew if there were many Japanese-Americans in Hawaii?

But regardless, as long as he could convince Carter and get this poor guy to take over the rotten mess of the Bass Bank, Paterson would be relieved.

Even if there were losses in the future, it wouldn't be his, Paterson's, losses. If Carter managed to pull it off, he would still get some credit.

"So, we're still short by one hundred and sixty million. As for toll charges, at most, we can charge $20 for the entire route. Not factoring in loan interest or short-distance tolls, we'll need about fifteen million car trips just to recoup the principal. With a twenty-year tolling period, that's an average of seven hundred and fifty thousand car trips per year, or sixty-two and a half thousand per month."

Tapping his fingers on the table with a bitter smile, Carter silently calculated the numbers. To break even, they would need at least a hundred thousand car trips per month, factoring in profits, interest, and short-distance tolls. However, with the current traffic flow, reaching that number wasn't optimistic. But as a brand-new road, its usage was hard to estimate.

"Alright, alright, stop calculating! What's the use of doing that? Contact Columbus first, see what they say, then figure out how to approach those Japanese folks."

"I've just come to Hawaii, and I'm already dealing with this?!"

As soon as Carter started reciting numbers, Jim felt like he was back in the days when work consumed his life.

"You're right. Let's leave it at that for now. I'll call Mayor Benjamin and ask him to reach out to Columbus, just to feel things out."

"That's the spirit! We're here on vacation, we can't be working on the first day! Let's go, there's a barbecue over there. I've tried it; it's delicious. And the girls are all waiting eagerly!"

Seeing Carter getting caught up in the numbers, Jim felt like he was being dragged back into his old life.

"What about tonight? Where do we eat, where do we stay? This place seems a bit expensive…"

As the assistant pointed to the bright sign of the Hilton, Paterson sighed softly. Such hotels were clearly not within FDIC's reimbursement standards for two struggling businessmen on a business trip.

"Let's eat first! We'll figure out where to stay afterward. We'll find somewhere cheaper nearby for the night."

But as they turned to leave, they were stopped by the hotel staff.

"Sorry, sir! Since you two are not guests of our hotel, you don't have access to the banquet."

Paterson: "Huh?"

Seeing the bustling crowd on the beach, Paterson was infuriated.

"Are you telling me they're all hotel guests? Does your hotel have that many rooms?!"

Facing Paterson's questioning, the waiter just shrugged and left with a retort, "Are you planning on wearing a bikini? Maybe some wealthy lady will take a liking to the gentleman next to you. Then you can attend the banquet. Otherwise, please leave!"

In that moment of being escorted off the premises, Paterson seemed to understand the hotel's business logic.

With handsome men and beautiful women, with romantic encounters, wouldn't guests want to stay longer? And where would they stay? At the hotel, of course! And for these girls, what could be more attractive than people who could afford to stay in high-end hotels for tourism and vacation during these times?

"I knew it! Even in this depression, how come there are so many tourists here? Turns out they're all working girls!"

As Paterson grumbled, Carter and Jim enjoyed themselves to the fullest. Two hot girls for less than a thousand dollars a day—what a bargain!

Hearing the numbers Carter mentioned, Carter was almost moved to tears. So with a big wave of his hand, he made the most extravagant expenditure to date: twenty thousand dollars for two people, for one month!

After a hearty meal, with beautiful women feeding them, the passion gradually faded. As night fell, the shameless nightlife arrived. Carter sent the girls to their rooms to freshen up and change, then he leaned in close to Jim, continuing to solicit his advice on this grand plan of road construction and attracting investment.

Compared to attracting domestic funds from the United States, which was likely to invite hate and even backstabbing, enticing Japanese money didn't have these problems!

Even if the road didn't get built, as long as enough Japanese companies came in, as long as the factories they established were large enough, the employees they hired could still solve the employment problem. Then he could follow suit and quietly swallow up another bank. How delightful!

"Jim, do you know any Japanese entrepreneurs? Or, in your opinion, which companies would be suitable for establishing a presence in Georgia?"