The Magician’s Memorial - Chapter 38



Only Krnovel

Episode 38 The first flip phone (4)

“We will do our best to help you become the owner of Myeongdong.”

“Just helping is not enough. “Please tell me in detail what I should do.”

“I heard that you own a lot of stocks and corporate bonds of large companies.”

“Of course, if it’s a corporate bond, you hold a lot of it. “Aren’t corporate bonds the same as private bonds?”

Another word for corporate bonds was private bonds.

Although it has a very different meaning from the private bonds we commonly use, it is ultimately similar in that it circulates in the Myeongdong private bond market.

“I will tell you which stocks and bonds you need to dispose of.”

Many large companies collapse due to the foreign exchange crisis.

Of course, the corporate bonds you own become trash.

But what if I told you in advance which corporate bonds would go bankrupt?

By stepping on Myeong-dong’s Jjangju, which suffered severe damage, the Gwanghwamun Bears have a chance to become the owners of Myeong-dong.

“Are you telling me to trust you and sell off all my stocks and bonds? ha ha ha! You have great confidence. “I really wonder where your confidence comes from.”

“Do you know who I met on this trip to America? “I had a great time with the hyenas.”

“By hyenas, I guess you mean the hyenas of Wall Street. Is the information you receive from Wall Street the source of your confidence? Compared to Wall Street, Myeong-dong is like a hole-in-the-wall store. By the way, Myeong-dong is the place where the most information comes from in Korea. “I can confidently say that Myeong-dong is more knowledgeable about Korean information than Wall Street in the United States.”

Where money flows, information flows.

Since Myeong-dong is a place that everyone who runs a business in Korea visits, it was natural that information would focus on Myeong-dong.

However, there is no way that he knows more information than me.

If they heard it with their ears, I saw the future with my own eyes.

“Since you doubt me, I guess I’ll have to prove it. “You know it’s Hanil Bank, right?”

“Of course I know. “Can we say that we are a loving relationship that lends money to each other?”

“Have you borrowed money now? Or did you lend it to me?”

“It’s a position I lent you.”

“Then get your money back right now.”

“if? Are you saying that the Korea-Japan Group is dangerous? No matter how difficult the economy is, there is no way for a bank to collapse.”

What’s so special about a bank?

If the investment fails and the deposit cannot be returned to the customer, it will go out of business.

Any bank can fail except the Bank of Korea, which prints money.

“Do you know that it is CT Bank?”

“Of course you don’t know. Isn’t this the bank that offered to repay the 400 billion won borrowed by Taewoo Motors to build the Changwon factory? “How can you not know that this is the reason why you met me like this?”

“Then do you know that CT Bank is the majority shareholder of Hanil Bank?”

“… … “I didn’t know that.”

“We received a loan of 400 billion won solely on credit. And that’s at a much lower interest rate than commercial banks.”

“You mean we are close enough to get information from CT Bank. And that information is Hanil Bank.”

Lies only increase in credibility when mixed with the truth.

SAVE Investment Company’s funds were simply loaned to Taewoo Motors under the name of CT Bank.

From the outside perspective, it appeared that CT Bank believed in my trustworthiness and lent me a large sum of 400 billion won.

I took advantage of that.

Chairman Seon-il Lee began to truly believe what I said.

“Hanil Bank is dangerous. Hehe, I didn’t even know that information while living in Myeongdong.”

“This is confidential information. “If it spreads elsewhere, I could lose an important piece of information.”

“Don’t worry, my mouth will never open. “But is there any other information?”

This is Chairman Seon-il Lee, who is halfway through the process.

In order to use him properly, I needed one more piece of information.

After much thought, I uncovered one piece of information I didn’t want to use.

“If you have Sampoong Group’s corporate bonds, collect them quickly. “There is a prediction that it will go bankrupt within this year.”

“Sampoong is one of the top 15 conglomerates in the business world. “Is it possible for a group that also owns a department store in central Seoul to fail?”

“The cash flow situation is very poor. “In the current situation, if one incident occurs, it will collapse helplessly.”

An incident occurs this year.

Sampoong Department Store collapses.

Sampoong Group cannot avoid bankruptcy due to problems with compensation for damages and a decline in trust.

“I will dispose of all Sampoong Group’s corporate bonds and stocks. But if the Sampoong Group is still alive after this year, I might have to consider joining hands with you again.”

“I don’t mind if you do that. But what would you do if all the information I told you was correct?”

I proudly puffed out my chest.

In order to give complete trust, not even the slightest hesitation is allowed.

“If that’s the case, then I have to believe you when you say that you make meju with red beans.”

“But it seems a little unreasonable. “I already showed you the two cards I have.”

“Of course, I also plan to give what I have to give. “But I couldn’t say it out loud because I didn’t know what you wanted.”

There was a reason why I was doing this with the Gwanghwamun Bear.

This was because he owned a large amount of stocks and corporate bonds of large corporations and had the power to move the stocks and corporate bonds held by other loan sharks in Myeong-dong.

“You can say it’s a reward for information, but first, please sell me the stocks and corporate bonds you own of Taewoo Electronics.”

“Why do you need Taewoo Electronics stock? “Chairman Kim will hand over the group to you anyway.”

“Of course I will receive shares from my grandfather. However, that stake alone is not enough to control Taewoo Electronics as I wish.”

“I want to control Taewoo Electronics. But my stake is only 5%. “Will that be enough?”

5 percent was by no means a small stake.

Taewoo Electronics’ annual sales exceeded KRW 2 trillion, and its net profit alone exceeded KRW 30 billion.

The market capitalization was about 800 billion won, which was low compared to the sales volume.

Still, 5 percent of the stake was worth approximately 40 billion won.

Of course, I wasn’t doing this with Gwanghwamun Bear just to get a 5 percent stake.

The connections he had built up in the private loan market in Myeong-dong over several decades were a greater ability than his capital.

“Obviously it’s not enough. “Can you collect Taewoo Electronics’ stocks and corporate bonds scattered around Myeong-dong?”

“I’m asking you to say something unpleasant to the junkies in Myeongdong. If you ask me to do it, of course I should do it. If you sweep Myeongdong, you should be able to save roughly 15%. “But there’s not much you can do with 15 percent.”

“I just need to take the shares that my grandfather has.”

My grandfather owned a 30 percent stake in Taewoo Electronics.

Taewoo Electronics’ shares held by other affiliates of the Taewo Group are approximately 20 percent.

If I make it all mine, I will own more than 65% of the shares.

The stake was enough to control Taewoo Electronics as I wanted.

“Do you think Chairman Kim will easily hand it over to you? Even though you are my grandson, you probably think it is too early. And you’re not even the president of Taewoo Electronics yet.”

“I am now the director of the research institute. However, I will become the president of Taewoo Electronics within this year.”

“Is that possible? “There is a lot of public attention, so unless you achieve some level of accomplishment, they won’t put you in the position of president.”

“I can do it.”

“I can’t tell if it’s arrogance or confidence.”

The Gwanghwamun bear scratched its head.

It was clear why he was given the nickname bear.

“Please collect corporate bonds and stocks as quickly as possible.”

“You know that you need at least 150 billion won to acquire stocks and corporate bonds, right?”

“I know very well.”

“Well, since he borrowed 400 billion won on credit, 150 billion won is also possible. Hehe, there won’t be anyone your age in Korea who moves money like that.”

There is so much money.

The problem is that you can’t get Taewoo Group’s shares just by having money.

I could get it if I paid a high price, but I didn’t want to overspend.

To that end, we maintained this relationship with the Gwanghwamun Bear.

I will make him the owner of Myeongdong.

If he works hard for me, we can achieve our mutual goals.

* * *

After meeting the Gwanghwamun bear, I returned to the mansion.

I fell into a deep sleep due to the long flight and the jet lag.

Then, when I opened my eyes again, my grandfather was stroking my hair with a kind smile.

“When did you come? “I tried to wake up before Grandpa came, I’m sorry.”

“There are a lot of things to be sorry for. When I go on a business trip to the U.S., I collapse for half the day. So, did the matter go well? I heard that technology research institutes are focusing on patents these days. “Is that why you went to America?”

There was a sense of disconnect between the grandfather I saw at work and the grandfather I saw at home.

At home, he was a person who cared more about his grandchildren than any other grandfather.

“I came back after solving it well. “I want to ensure that Taewoo Group holds more patents than other groups in the future.”

“That’s a good idea. I should have realized the importance of technology a long time ago, but I didn’t, so you’re having a hard time. ah! I have some good news for you. It is said that Taewoo Electronics has applied for a patent for the next-generation display that will be used in TVs.”

Although my grandfather neglected technology.

The Taewo Group’s technological prowess was not inferior to that of other groups.

This is because the gap has been filled by purchasing technological capabilities with money.

If you calculate the money, manpower, and time spent on technology development, it may actually be a profitable business.

But it was only a short-term benefit.

The know-how and experience gained during the technology development process cannot be bought with money.

As time passes, the technology gap with other groups will eventually widen, and eventually they will be left out.

Of course, it was possible to close the gap by purchasing new technology with money.

If only Taewo Group had the money to do so.

“Taewoo Electronics’ TV sales are increasing every year. “Now that we have developed new technology, our market share will also increase.”

“We have made plans to increase our domestic market share to 30 percent. They say Samjin is pouring money into lowering prices and holding various events, but in the end, won’t they buy our sturdy products?”

Beware of tanks.

We will create a product that is as durable as a tank and can be used for a long time.

Although this kind of marketing may increase Taewoo Electronics’ market share, it will eventually collapse due to lack of technology.

Home appliances are not good just because they are sturdy.

You can only survive if you have technology that is ahead of the times.

“TV is important, but the mobile phone market is growing rapidly these days.”

“Samjin Electronics is already focusing on the mobile phone business. However, we are still lagging behind foreign mobile phone companies.”

“I believe the gap will narrow in the near future. “It is said that Samjin Electronics sold more than 200,000 mobile phones last year alone.”

“So you’re telling me to focus on my phone too?”

“You only need one TV at home, but the day will soon come when everyone in the family will have a cell phone.”

I threw the bait of a cell phone to my grandfather.

The flip phone I was about to build was the product that would bring Steve back to Apple and put me in the position of president of Taewoo Electronics.