CH405 | Heir

I moved to the new drug development lab with Dr. Kim Jangwoo.

The first thing that caught my eye was the sight of more than 300 talented researchers working hard on drug development.

“Your research staff has certainly grown.”

“There are 350 researchers dedicated to drug development alone. If you add in the other departments, we have over 700.”

“And how many of them are working specifically on mRNA and DNA-based drugs?”

“Not many. Since there are so few experts in that field, the talent pool itself is small. Barely fifty at most.”

Barely fifty.

That was far too few.

Although mRNA had been attracting attention since the early 2000s, it wasn’t yet a profitable technology, so it had not received much support.

“We’ll need to invest in building up the talent pool. That’s why we’re planning to support IIT and several other universities. Not only can we bring the most promising people here to Centurion, but we can also form various collaborations.”

“That’s an excellent idea. Even though we hold patents for mRNA technology, we’re not really making good use of them.”

We had secured the mRNA patents long ago.

There were many related patents, but the most critical ones were in our possession.

Still, having patents alone wasn’t enough to create treatments. We needed much greater investment.

“Within the next two years, I want us to hire at least ten times more researchers in mRNA and DNA.”

“That many? While mRNA shows potential for diseases like AIDS, malaria, and influenza, we still haven’t succeeded in producing a true treatment with it.”

“Don’t you think Centurion needs to create new drugs on its own strength? I believe mRNA is the key.”

“Haha, you’re giving me quite the challenge. Very well. Before I die, I will make sure Centurion develops its own original drug.”

We had to start building up the technology now.

Only then would we be able to release a treatment quickly when the coronavirus began to spread.

“You can use as much funding as you need. I’ll provide support in the trillions.”

“…My ears must be failing me with age. Did you just say trillions?”

“That’s right. And if trillions aren’t enough, I plan to invest tens of trillions. So please recruit as much talent as you want from Korea, the United States, Europe, and India. I’ll also secure a large research facility dedicated to mRNA and DNA in the near future.”

It wasn’t possible to construct a new building right away.

But purchasing a building and converting it into a research facility could be done quickly.

“You really mean it, don’t you.”

“This isn’t just about Centurion. Think of it as an investment in the future of Korea’s biotech industry.”

“Haha, then I truly made the right choice in coming to Korea. I’ll burn my last flame for this.”

In my conversation with Dr. Kim Jangwoo, there had been no exaggeration or falsehood.

I was genuinely ready to pour trillions into the biotech industry.

And if we succeeded in being the first to develop a treatment for the coronavirus, the investment would be recouped many times over.

***

By July, the Chinese stock market had continued to fall sharply.

From its peak, it had dropped by more than 22 percent, and the Chinese government was scrambling to put out the fire by pulling out different measures.

At the Financial Tower, everyone’s attention was on the moves the Chinese government would make.

Predicting which card China would play was the key to maintaining high returns.

Vice Chairman Han was no exception.

He came to me holding a list of possible options and asked for my opinion.

“China has several cards it can use: lowering interest rates, big deals, devaluing the yuan, or launching large-scale infrastructure projects. Our strategy at Financial Tower has to adjust depending on which card they choose.”

“They’ll go with a yuan devaluation. It’s the easiest option available right now, and the Chinese government won’t go further than that for the moment.”

“You mean they’ll touch the yuan?”

A yuan devaluation.

In other words, deliberately lowering the value of the currency.

That would boost exports and make it easier to deal with the decline in foreign reserves.

“It’s the simplest and strongest card China has. The yuan isn’t a reserve currency, but since it’s used widely in trade, it’s a move they can make.”

“If they devalue the yuan, exports will definitely rebound.”

“On top of that, it’s also an effective way to drive out currency speculators.”

“That sounds like exactly the kind of news Representative George of Quantum Fund would love to hear.”

When it came to currency markets, no one could match George.

In short selling, Vice Chairman Han and the recently recruited ‘King of Shorts,’ Chanos, might be more skilled, but in exchange rates, George had the rare ability to take on entire nations and win.

“If we leave it to George, he’ll know how to squeeze the most out of it.”

“But the level of devaluation matters. Our investment scale will depend on how far China goes.”

“China is preparing to devalue the yuan preemptively, ahead of U.S. interest rate hikes. They’ll adjust the devaluation in line with the size of those hikes.”

“Then that’s how we’ll proceed!”

Vice Chairman Han’s face lit up with renewed energy.

He rushed straight back to his office to start drafting an investment plan.

Only then did the chief of planning, who had been waiting outside, step into the room.

“Chairman, I have something to report.”

“What is it?”

“We’ve obtained information the government is keeping hidden. A contagious disease that broke out in the Middle East has now appeared in Korea. A person who returned from Bahrain has tested positive.”

“A contagious disease from the Middle East? Is it called MERS, by any chance?”

“Yes. It’s also known as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome. The government is disclosing the information only to medical personnel in order to prevent panic and misunderstandings. So right now, very few people know about it.”

Why had I forgotten this?

Because of COVID-19, MERS had completely slipped my mind.

In fact, compared to COVID-19, MERS was far less transmissible.

COVID-19 had spread so widely that it felt as if everyone in the world had been infected, but MERS had only about 2,500 cases.

That was why I had forgotten.

But thinking about it now, the impact of MERS was by no means small.

“I need to head to Centurion immediately. Keep gathering all the information you can on MERS.”

“I’ll track down everything and report back.”

I hurried to Centurion and immediately summoned CEO Seo Jungjun and Dr. Kim Jangwoo.

“Have you heard? MERS has been confirmed here in Korea.”

“W-what? Is that true? There hasn’t been any news about it, not even an official announcement from the government.”

“They’ll announce it soon enough. Has the new drug development team been conducting any research into a treatment for MERS?”

MERS was not a virus that had just appeared this year.

It had first been reported in Egypt in 2012, so there was already a fair amount of information on it.

“We are conducting research, but due to the lack of data, there hasn’t been much progress.”

“I know MERS was first announced in academic circles back in 2012. It’s been three years already—how can there still be so little data?”

“Because no pharmaceutical company in the world is interested in developing a treatment for MERS.”

“In other words, there’s no money in it.”

Pharmaceutical companies were never charities.

They only invested in diseases that made money. No matter how high the fatality rate, if a disease wasn’t profitable, they wouldn’t touch it.

“With influenza, the transmission rate is extremely high, so treatments or vaccines are needed in large quantities. But with coronaviruses like SARS and MERS, the transmission rate is relatively low, which means profitability is very low.”

The minimum cost of developing a new drug was about 500 billion won.

Not only money but also three to five years of time had to be invested.

And if, after pouring in that much time and money, the treatment or vaccine didn’t sell, the company would suffer massive losses.

That was why pharmaceutical companies paid no attention to coronaviruses.

While influenza treatments and vaccines were flooding the market, in the case of MERS and SARS, it was difficult even to obtain related data, let alone develop treatments.

“So the conclusion is that it’s better to rely on hospital care than to develop a treatment or vaccine.”

“For example, there was once a company developing a treatment for SARS. They had completed animal testing, but just before moving on to human clinical trials, SARS was designated as a controllable disease, so they halted development.”

A controllable disease.

In other words, its transmissibility was weak.

It meant that even without a treatment or vaccine, the current medical system was sufficient to handle it.

“What would you think about Centurion developing a vaccine and treatment for MERS?”

“As researchers, we would welcome it. It’s an excellent opportunity to apply mRNA and DNA methods. But from the company’s perspective, it would be a terrible investment that brings nothing but losses.”

“All funding will be covered by the Taewoo Group.”

We had to get used to coronaviruses now.

That was the only way to be properly prepared for the COVID-19 outbreak a few years down the line.

Looked at differently, this could also be a valuable opportunity.

Since no pharmaceutical company in the world was paying attention to coronaviruses, it was our chance to take the lead.

“But simply investing money won’t be enough to develop vaccines and treatments. We need a large number of samples, and for that, we need a system that lets us monitor infected patients around the clock.”

“Don’t worry about that. I’ll arrange for all domestic MERS patients to be transferred to Taewoo Hospital. We’ll collect and provide you with every piece of information, from the early stages of infection through recovery.”

“Treating a coronavirus requires enormous amounts of equipment and specialized facilities.”

“Money is not an issue. As I’ve said before, I’m ready to spend trillions on the advancement of the biotech industry. Consider MERS treatment part of that commitment.”

“My, Chairman, you almost seem like a man desperate to spend money. Of course, from the perspective of researchers like us, there’s no one better.”

That was Dr. Kim Jang-woo putting me in a flattering light.

But in truth, I held the same mindset as any other pharmaceutical company:

‘I don’t invest in things that don’t make money.’

At this moment, developing a MERS treatment wouldn’t be profitable.

But if the experience allowed us to create treatments and vaccines for COVID-19, we could earn ten times the investment, which was why I made this decision.

“If I’m going to spend money, I may as well spend a little more. You mentioned there was once a company developing a SARS treatment?”

“Yes. They had completed animal testing, but withdrew due to lack of funds. It was an American pharmaceutical company called Chiron.”

“I’ll purchase the SARS treatment from Chiron. All their research data, all their methods for development—I’ll acquire everything and provide it to you. Wouldn’t that help at least somewhat with developing a MERS treatment?”

SARS and MERS were both coronaviruses.

Even if the help wasn’t enormous, in this situation where data was scarce, it would be like rain in a drought.

“If you’re willing to support us to that extent, then I’ll stake everything I have on creating a treatment.”

“Good. Then let’s move forward with confidence.”

There were still many hurdles left in developing a treatment.

Above all, negotiations with the government were the most critical part.

And if we could frame it as Taewoo Group stepping up to support the government, all the better.

We were already under a bit of scrutiny over the foundation’s installment-based donation payments.

In such a climate, if we announced we were pouring vast sums into developing a MERS treatment, just imagine how grateful the government would be.

TL/n -

SARS and MERS are both viral respiratory illnesses caused by coronaviruses, but they differ in origin, spread, and severity

• SARS spread faster globally but was less deadly.
  

• MERS spreads less efficiently but is much deadlier.