New Employees With an Annual Salary of 1 Trillion Won - Chapter 26

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 26. Ghost Story (1)

 

 

 

Tiger Fund, considered one of the three major funds on Wall Street.

While the headquarters operated as a typical hedge fund structure, only the Korea Branch was run as a private equity fund.

 

This was entirely thanks to Branch Manager Kang Dong-ju’s request.

He had given up his executive position at headquarters and taken the Korea Branch Manager position on the condition of being allowed independent operation as a private equity fund.

 

Of course, most funds mixed hedge and private equity methods.

But Tiger Fund was fundamentally an organization with strong hedge fund tendencies.

Therefore, the Tiger Fund Headquarters executives were not pleased with Branch Manager Kang Dong-ju’s methods.

 

“The person who said he would acquire promising Korean banks using private equity methods – what exactly is he doing now? Is a company called Nexpin a bank?”

“I judged it to be more promising than banks, and indeed, the corporate value has risen significantly in less than half a year.”

“Since when have we been acquiring companies and going around exhibitions? This could affect Tiger Fund’s prestige. Some clients are calling with questions!”

 

Headquarters executives checking the Branch Manager.

However, Tiger Fund’s chairman, Robertson, actually defended Branch Manager Kang Dong-ju.

 

“What prestige does a fund have? And clients are people who would turn a blind eye to crime as long as we make them money.”

“Still, Branch Manager Mike’s methods are too different from the style Tiger Fund has maintained so far.”

“What’s the rush? Let’s hear Branch Manager Mike’s story first.”

 

Branch Manager Kang Dong-ju pulled out the materials he had prepared in advance.

The materials were simultaneously displayed on the screen, detailing what achievements he had made in Korea so far.

 

“We acquired Product Development Division 3 from GL Group and established a company called Nexpin. The corporate value has already risen more than 20 times, and as you can see from media reports, we’ve signed joint development or licensing contracts with Microsoft, Apple, and others.”

“Branch Manager Mike certainly has an eye for things. To think of making money by acquiring a single department. However, looking at scale alone, isn’t it quite a bit smaller than banks?”

 

Of course, the funds allocated to the Korea Branch were by no means small.

Kang Dong-ju was a former headquarters executive, and Chairman Robertson, who trusted him, had entrusted him with a massive $100 million as operating funds.

This was also part of Tiger Fund’s global diversified investment strategy, an amount equivalent to about 0.5% of the total fund assets.

 

“Besides Nexpin, we’ve invested in several other places, all achieving great success.

In particular, we invested $2.6 million in Saera Technology and Dream Rain IPOs, and are currently recording nearly 20 times the return rate.”

“20 times means $2.6 million became over $50 million?”

“That’s correct. Even considering the Korea Branch operating funds are $100 million, the overall return rate exceeds 50%. For individual stocks alone, it’s an incredible 1,900%.”

 

The executives’ lips sealed shut.

Since the Korea Branch’s operating performance was only reported to Chairman Robertson.

Most of them thought ‘Nexpin’ reported in the media was everything.

 

“While we earned $50 million profit from two stocks, I still judge Nexpin’s value to be higher. It will become Tiger Fund’s new cash cow.”

“You mean you won’t sell Nexpin?”

“We might sell it someday, but not now. Even though the value has risen 20 times, it’s still dirt cheap.”

 

Chairman Robertson smiled with satisfaction.

Several executives who felt threatened by that smile raised objections.

 

“That’s only possible because the operating funds are small. US IT companies are much more stable and efficient than Korean companies. Most teams are already concentrating on US tech stocks and have significantly increased their holdings.”

“Daniel, where are you concentrating your investments?”

“Amazon. It’s already risen over 20% and is still showing strength.”

“So that’s hot? Then 1,900% must be lava.”

 

The current situation in the US Market was very good.

Especially tech stocks centered on IT companies were rising steeply, and most of Wall Street was in fierce competition to grab tech stocks.

 

“Short-term, the Korea Branch’s return rate looks high, but on a yearly basis, it will eventually converge. And looking at actual profit scale… comparison itself would be difficult.”

“Of course. If we fell behind in profits to the Korea Branch with only 0.5% operating funds, this fund should close down.”

“…”

 

The executives closed their mouths again.

Even if they wanted to criticize, Branch Manager Kang Dong-ju’s performance was proven by numbers.

 

“If the Korea Branch has achieved this level of performance, we should naturally reward it. I’ll allocate an additional $500 million in operating funds.

Now you can do whatever you want to your heart’s content.”

“Thank you. I will definitely repay you with results.”

 

With this, the Korea Branch’s operating funds instantly increased to $600 million.

Nearly 700 billion won in Korean currency.

For Branch Manager Kang Dong-ju, it was like sweet rain after a drought.

 

“Haha, there’s a reason I like Branch Manager Mike. He’s always overflowing with confidence. And everyone stay alert. When someone achieves results like this, eventually someone has to give up their seat, don’t you think?”

“That won’t happen!”

 

Even the air in the Conference Room changed.

No one could say it out loud, but they were already calculating each other’s positions.

 

This was Chairman Robertson’s scheme.

His intention to create tension while pretending to support Branch Manager Kang Dong-ju.

During boom periods, minds tend to become lax, and he used Branch Manager Kang Dong-ju as a whip.

 

***

 

After finishing the COMDEX Exhibition, we boarded a flight to Korea.

But completely different seats from when we took the flight to the United States were waiting for us.

 

“Our seats are first class? Wow! President, have you ever taken first class? This is my first time in my life. Youngest Employee is really amazing. His first flight was business and his second business is first class.”

“Lower your voice. Everyone’s staring. How embarrassing…”

 

Manager Kim’s booming voice drew the attention of all first-class passengers.

And among them were many faces we knew well.

Large Corporation executives who had attended this COMDEX were on the same flight.

 

Not just stares, but sharp words flew as well.

Department Manager Jang Do-hoon from GL Group stood up from his seat and threw sarcasm.

 

“Private equity funds sure are nice. They connect a company that had nothing with MS and Apple. After getting a taste of America, you’re really excited. President Cha must have been born lucky.”

“Isn’t luck also a skill?”

“Don’t get too excited just because you got lucky once. If you rely only on luck without skill, you’ll eventually collapse.”

 

Department Manager Jang Do-hoon was really pouring out harsh words.

But the President didn’t even respond and just sat down, leaning back in his chair with a smile.

At that sight, Department Manager Jang Do-hoon’s eyes trembled as he returned to his seat.

 

“Department Manager Jang is still acting like that toward the President.”

“Well, he’s not entirely wrong. We were lucky at this expo.”

“I also thought it was luck, but after meeting and talking with the Branch Manager, it didn’t seem like luck.”

 

If you just sit still and pick up a coin, that would be good fortune.

But if you designed a situation where you had no choice but to pick up the coin, it’s hard to call that luck.

 

“Do you think the Branch Manager manipulated both MS and Apple?”

“It appears he cleverly exploited the relationship between Apple and MS, and even utilized the private equity fund’s network to orchestrate such a scene.”

 

Having attended the negotiation, I could be certain.

There was no such thing as luck – it was an achievement made possible by design based on skill.

 

“Whether this was luck or our skill will become clearer with time. For now, let’s get some sleep. You didn’t rest properly yesterday because of shopping.”

“I’m already prepared to sleep.”

 

Manager Kim was already wearing an eye mask.

Since the schedule had been so hectic without rest, fatigue had accumulated, and my colleagues quickly fell asleep.

 

But for me, this was just the beginning.

Time to do the patent development I couldn’t do during the event.

Just that thought made my frustrated feelings disappear instantly, and various blueprints filled my mind.

 

“Manager Kim, you need to wake up. We’ve arrived in Korea.”

“Is it that time already?”

 

Manager Kim rubbed his eyes as he got up.

The President shook his head at the sight.

 

“How can you sleep like the dead? That’s also a talent. You slept straight for 14 hours without even eating.”

“I was so tired I didn’t even think about food.”

“Let’s hurry down and get a bowl of hot soup.”

 

We gathered our luggage and headed to the immigration hall.

But when the immigration hall doors opened, something unimaginable was happening.

 

“Is some celebrity returning today?”

“There are quite a few reporters. But… they don’t look like entertainment reporters?”

“I see familiar faces. They’re economic reporters.”

 

The President had conducted reporter interviews during his GL Group days, so he immediately recognized the reporters’ affiliations.

However, he didn’t expect that those reporters were waiting for us.

 

“Are you President Cha Ik-hyeon of Nexpin? We’d like an interview please.”

“News that you signed contracts with MS and Apple has been reported in Korea. What exactly did you contract?”

“We heard you agreed to joint development with MS. What do you think is the reason MS chose Nexpin?”

 

Reporters swarming endlessly.

I stepped back to clear a path for the reporters to approach the President.

 

“Employee Lee, what on earth is this situation?”

“It seems the contract news was also reported in Korea.”

“Look over there. There aren’t even that many reporters from GL or Samjin. Could it be… did the Branch Manager arrange the reporters too?”

“Maybe in the United States, but this is Korea. It would be difficult for a private equity fund to go that far, not being a large corporation.”

 

The President suffered through a barrage of reporters’ questions for a long time.

Only after an interview lasting over an hour and hundreds of camera flashes could we finally board the waiting vehicle.

 

“Living long enough, you experience all kinds of things. An exclusive interview at the immigration hall.”

“You worked so hard!”

“President, I didn’t know you spoke so well. Anyone would think you wrote a speech beforehand.”

“First, we need to assess the situation. Let’s go straight to the company. We’ll just work briefly today, and I’ll give you tomorrow off. We need to give gifts to the employees too.”

 

Inside the car became quiet.

Everyone just stared out the windows in a daze, letting time pass.

When we arrived at the company, the faces of the employees who came to greet us looked haggard.

 

“President! What on earth did you do in the United States!”

“We get hundreds of phone calls a day, and emails are overflowing!”

“Reporters came all the way to the company, so we even installed a new security system!”

 

Is this what someone harassed by loan sharks would look like?

They looked more exhausted than us who had traveled to and from the United States.

 

“We heard you were resting while in the United States, so why do your faces look like that?”

“Rest? What rest! You don’t know how many collaboration requests poured in from American companies like Apple, MS, and PayPal! We worked later than usual processing those!”

“Collaboration requests came in already? People are really impatient.”

“Did you really contract with MS and Apple? I saw the articles, but honestly, I was skeptical.”

 

The President nodded.

It should have been a moment for cheers, but instead the employees drooped their shoulders.

 

“So we really have to handle all that work.”

“You all worked hard. That’s why I bought lots of gifts you’d like.”

“American snacks? My blood sugar dropped, so that’s perfect. I need to open a few.”

“Snacks? Do I look like such a small-minded person? Just open them first.”

 

Gift boxes distributed evenly among colleagues.

The Department Manager, who unwrapped his first, asked with a puzzled expression.

 

“What is this?”

“Department Manager! Can’t you tell just by looking? It’s a luxury bag! Each bag costs 2 million won. If you give it to your wife, the number of side dishes will change.”

“It’s not a knockoff, is it?”

“Of course not! There’s even a receipt in here.”

 

When I pulled out a receipt with a clear brand logo from the packaging, the employees’ expressions changed instantly.

Some couldn’t hide their laughter, while others hugged their bags with both arms in emotion.

 

“You didn’t need to go this far. Isn’t this too much of a burden for you?”

“Can’t I do at least this much for our employees? My bank account balance might take a bit of a hit, but it’s only natural to do this for employees who worked hard.”

 

The fact that those luxury bags were bought with money won at the casino was a secret only we knew.

And actually, we had also shared gifts among ourselves that were much more expensive than the bags.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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