The Magician’s Memorial - Chapter 96



Only Krnovel

Episode 96. WIN-WIN (4)

Jang Soo-young, president of Taewo Construction, is my grandfather’s right-hand man.

As he was one of the founding members of Taewo Group, he was a person with overwhelming power within the group.

But the power structure was broken.

It was not because I, the successor, joined the group, but because other affiliates caught up with or surpassed Taewoong Construction’s sales.

Taewoo Electronics, automobiles, and even the oil company formed with Aramco.

Taewoo Engineering & Construction was gradually being pushed to the bottom of the list, and on top of that, it was compounded by the foreign exchange crisis.

Therefore, CEO Jang Soo-young’s voice as he reported the first half of the year’s financial statements had no strength at all.

“The real estate market is very bad. It decreased by about 38% compared to the previous year, and as a result, Taewoo Engineering & Construction’s sales also decreased by 30%. However, compared to other construction companies, we are consistently winning contracts.”

“Hmm, they say the construction economy is bad, but the performance is still very poor. “It is true that other construction companies are shaken by their parent companies, but what if Taewo Construction is shaken even though Taewu Group is firmly supporting it?”

“The exchange rate has risen so much that raw material prices have skyrocketed. Please take into account the resulting decrease in sales.”

To be honest, it wasn’t President Jang Soo-young’s responsibility.

How can the construction industry be good when the country’s situation is like this?

But I didn’t defend him.

He’s my grandfather’s right hand man, but he’s not my right hand man.

Moreover, before his return, he was a person who betrayed Taewo Group and went his own way.

“Hmm, among the affiliates, there is no affiliate that has suffered losses as much as Taewoo Engineering & Construction. Are we going to just forget about the money that other affiliates have earned?”

“As long as the economy improves, we can bounce back at any time. Please give me some time.”

President Jang Soo-young bowed his head and said.

In the past, the president of another affiliate would have come forward to defend him.

No one came forward for him, who had fallen away from the pendulum of power.

My grandfather must have been frustrated by that, so he asked me a question.

“What does the planning director think? Should we just watch Taewoo Engineering & Construction like this?”

“It’s not that there is no way to increase Taewoo Construction’s sales. “There is a way to take first place in the contract rankings right away.”

The ranking of construction companies is determined by their contract ranking.

Taewoo Engineering & Construction was ranked 3rd the year before last, and rose to 2nd place last year.

However, it was unable to overcome the huge barrier of Hyunjae Construction, the undisputed number one.

However, when I heard that there was a way to beat Hyunjae Construction and take first place in the contract rankings, not only my grandfather but also the presidents of all affiliates focused on me.

“What is the way?”

“There are ways to participate in government business.”

“You mean projects like highway or bridge construction?”

“Government projects have also come to a halt. How can a government-led construction project be carried out when the country is bankrupt? “The general manager says he still doesn’t know much about the situation in the construction industry.”

President Jang Soo-young raised his voice.

You’ve been acting like a criminal until now, but when you think I made a mistake, you turn around and attack me.

I really need to cut him down as soon as possible.

“Would the government not do infrastructure projects because there is no money? “The government has no choice but to use private investment to build infrastructure.”

“There is already talk that the Blue House will introduce the MRG method to stimulate private investment.”

The minimum operating income guarantee was MRG.

To put it simply, the government doesn’t have money right now, so it can’t pay for construction costs.

This meant that you would be responsible for the construction costs since we would guarantee you a certain level of revenue from tolls or other revenue each year.

President Jang Soo-young also knew the MRG method well.

He raised it again to rebut.

“The MRG method has clear disadvantages. It costs a lot of money because we have to pay the initial investment. This is a fatal method for construction companies whose life depends on the distribution of funds. “It may take 30 years or more to recoup all the money.”

“I agree with President Jang Soo-young. But we can do it without paying any funds.”

“You mean to save Zhenzhu.”

Zhen Zhu invests the money, and Taewo Construction only handles construction.

Since I could win a contract, my contract ranking would naturally go up, so it was an unconditional benefit.

“Which bank will provide the huge initial capital? This is absolutely impossible. “The banking sector is also suffering from financial pressure.”

“They say Korean banks are out of money, but aren’t foreign banks like that? “Wall Street in particular is overflowing with money.”

I looked down at CEO Jang Soo-young and said.

With a look in my eyes that says I can easily do what you can’t.

“Hmm, it would be great if everything goes as the director says, but I don’t think it will be easy. “There is no guarantee that Taewoo Engineering & Construction will win orders just because it enters a private investment business on Wall Street.”

“I will make it possible. “We will make Wall Street investment companies enter the private investment business and ensure that Taewoo Engineering & Construction can win all orders.”

“Hehe, you have great confidence. “Okay, give it a try.”

Grandfather’s permission was granted.

At that moment, CEO Jang Soo-young looked at me and sneered.

It was a mockery made because he was convinced that it would be difficult to find Zhen Zhou and win orders.

It must be hard for you.

I have SAVE investment company.

Why would you save Zhen Zhou? It’s okay if I become Jjianju.

And so did Suju. Since I have money, isn’t it up to me to choose a company?

* * *

I went to Captain Kang’s office.

Dimon was still using this place as a temporary office, making plans and carrying out operations for mergers and acquisitions of new companies.

“It’s a lot of trouble in a narrow space. Please be patient.”

“In its own way, this kind of life is fun.”

“Still, we brought you here from the United States with great difficulty, so we can’t just make you do rear-guard work. “In the near future, Taewo Group will first entrust all newly acquired companies to external consulting firms.”

“I’m going to be the CEO of a consulting company. And I will play the role of taking criticism instead.”

Dimon caught my intention exactly.

External consulting firm. Those are good words.

To put it simply, it meant asking them to do something that would be criticized, such as restructuring, on behalf of the group.

It was clear that this was what Dimon did best.

It was also the best way to prevent Taewoo Group’s name from appearing in the media.

“I’m sorry for entrusting you with such a difficult task.”

“There is no need to apologize. “As long as you keep the promise you made to me, I don’t mind giving you more difficult tasks.”

I recalled my promise to Dimon at the time.

A promise to make you the best bank representative in the United States.

I never once forgot that promise, and I planned to put Dimon in that position even if he said he didn’t like it.

“Don’t worry about that. “I will get you there in 10 years.”

“Sandy Weil said he was working on a merger between Travelers and Citigroup. The merger will probably be successful within this year, and Sandy Weil will take over as CEO. “It means it’s becoming increasingly difficult to keep your promise to me.”

“The higher you fly, the more it hurts when you fall. “When he goes to the abyss, I will make Daimon fly.”

Dimon gave a thumbs up.

This was possible because he knew very well that I don’t say nonsense.

“What should I do first this time? “It doesn’t look like you will be working as an external consulting representative right now, so aren’t you here with other work to do?”

“I came here with a job to kill time. The government is planning to begin infrastructure construction through private investment projects. I plan to acquire it all through SAVE Investment Company. And we are trying to promote Taewoo Engineering & Construction as a company that receives construction orders.”

Dimon nodded and listened to my story.

Dimon was familiar with private investment projects in the United States, as he had already started them.

“Since the Korean government has no money, we will have no choice but to pursue private investment projects. But honestly, there is a high possibility that it will be a loss-making business. “Can we make money by building Korea’s infrastructure?”

“The government plans to use MRG to attract private investment projects.”

“It means guaranteed income. “It will be beneficial in the long run.”

MRG was a system that guaranteed income from the government.

Sun Dimon calculated that there would be no loss in that method.

“Dimon’s job is to negotiate with the government. “I would probably promise a 30-year income guarantee, but wouldn’t it be 40 years before there would be any profit left?”

“It’s not that difficult. “For the Korean government, since it is building infrastructure without spending a single penny, there is a very high possibility that it will grant the conditions we want.”

“That’s why I said it was an easy job.”

Korea was in the worst economic situation due to the foreign exchange crisis.

Therefore, the feasibility study also had no choice but to flow in a negative direction.

Who would have expected that Korea would quickly overcome the economic crisis and develop at a tremendous speed?

Of course, it was impossible for the government to predict.

So we were able to negotiate on terms that were favorable to us.

“The negotiation itself is easy, but won’t there be a problem if we push the order to Taewoo Engineering & Construction?”

“I’m a little worried about that too.”

“If the company’s debt ratio is set at 50% or less as a condition for bidders receiving construction orders, construction companies other than Taewo Construction will not even be able to bid.”

“The construction industry is in a recession, so everyone’s debt ratio must be high.”

“The problem arises when it becomes known that SAVE Investment Company is owned by the CEO. So, we need to form a consortium and proceed with this project.”

Consortium means an alliance.

It also refers to a method in which several companies jointly participate in winning construction projects.

Consortiums were often used to win large construction orders.

Since most of the companies participating in the consortium were investment companies, it was possible to hide the SAVE investment company within them.

“How do you plan to create a consortium? “You’re not going to involve Wall Street companies, are you?”

“We will primarily involve several paper companies and affiliates created by SAVE Investment Company. But we need to bring in a company that can take the bullets for us.”

“If all of our paper companies participate, what percentage of the shares can we divide?”

“You can break it down to about 7% or less.”

“Then I guess I’ll have to give you 7% of the shares in exchange for one bullet canister.”

7% wasn’t bad.

In return for using it not only as a cannon fodder but also as a way to hide the SAVE Investment Company, they could have given a profit of about 7%.

“I think a Quantum Fund that is close to the CEO would be a perfect cannon fodder.”

“I guess I’ll have to talk to George for the first time in a while. “If I were to say that I only need to invest 7% of the construction cost, I wouldn’t say no.”

“If the CEO asks us to do it together, George will definitely do it.”

“They would like it more if we told them to name the consortium Quantum Consortium.”

The most famous person on Wall Street was George, and the most famous fund was the Quantum Fund.

From the pound war with Britain to Germany, France, Japan and Korea.

Since he was leading Wall Street, negotiations with the government could be carried out more easily if he borrowed the name of the Quantum Fund.