Patreon removed my old account due to a community guidelines violation, and unfortunately, I don’t have a backup of my work. I’ve requested Patreon to provide all my old account data, but it has been over two weeks without any response.
Since I cannot wait any longer, I’ve decided to re-translate all the old chapters from the beginning and will be updating them regularly.
Thank you for your patience and understanding—sorry for the inconvenience.
2025-08-25 10:42:31 +0000 UTC View PostTwo months had passed since the iPhone was released.
The supply issues with the iPhone had stabilized, and the explosive response continued unabated.
Perhaps because of this, smiles were widespread on the faces of Taewoo Electronics CEO Woo Seong-il and Taewoo Telecom CEO Lee Joo-young.
"Taewoo Electronics’ stock price has returned to pre-dotcom bubble levels! The iPhone is driving Taewoo's shares upward."
"It's only natural since Taewoo Electronics holds a 10% s...
The iPhone excitement showed no signs of cooling over time.
The initial stock of 100,000 units sold out within a week, and Taewoo Electronics’ factory was running to fill the shortage.
Because of this, Taewoo Electronics was on emergency alert.
Workers were deployed to iPhone production, requiring overtime and weekend shifts.
As the situation grew busier instead of easing, President Woo Sung-il came to me with complaints.
“Vice Chairman, the entire facto...
Samsung Electronics secured the highest market capitalization as it entered the 2000s.
While the group's overall ranking in Korea’s business world was still second to Taewoo Group, Samsung Electronics was the number one company when considered on its own.
Samsung was a powerhouse, rivaling entire conglomerates.
There were two vice chairmen, five presidents, and more than ten executive vice presidents among the company’s leadership, all of whom wielded tremendous power. Heated...
The chief secretary’s anger erupted,
but the telecom cartel remained steadfast, and even today, they gathered in a cheerful atmosphere for drinks.
“Chairman, you’ve been working hard. Please endure just a little longer.”
“What’s there to endure? I just let it go in one ear and out the other.”
“Thank you so much. We’ll continue to rely on your efforts. Even after you step down as chairman, you’ll still have to work hard, so we’re sorry for that.”...
June, the momentous month, had arrived.
With the beginning of the second half of 2001, the iPhone was launched.
Expectations had been raised to the highest at CES, which led to an explosive reaction.
But the scale of the explosion was beyond anyone's anticipation.
Stores selling electronics across the United States were packed with crowds eager to buy the iPhone, and even tourists from Europe, where the iPhone had not yet been released, came to the U.S. just to pur...
I called Lee Joo-young, president of Tae-woo Telecom, to the vice chairman’s office.
He looked exhausted, probably because he was in charge of all matters related to the iPhone launch.
“How is the iPhone launch progressing?”
“From supply to sales, there are no problems. But other telecom companies are trying to impose restrictions.”
“Of course KS Telecom wants to block it. If Tae-woo Telecom starts exclusive sales of the iPhone, KS Telecom's market shar...
Representative Yoon Hyun-gil was begging for forgiveness until his voice was hoarse.
His head was covered in blood, and perhaps due to excessive bleeding, he could barely hold himself upright.
“Shall I tell you how to survive?”
“If you tell me how, I will do anything!”
“If you promise to be a lifelong bait, I will let you live.”
“If you say become a worm, I will become a worm.”
Representative Yoon answered reflexively.
He had no...
November 21st.
Taewoo Group officially announced the acquisition of Hyundai Semiconductor.
I personally shook hands with the creditors and signed the documents before heading to Captain Kang’s office.
“Congratulations on acquiring Hyundai Semiconductor.”
“I’m not sure if it’s something to be congratulated on. It’s like having taken on an enormous bomb.”
“A bomb, if used well, can become a nuclear power plant. If used poorly, it becomes a nu...
Captain Kang’s office.
I was clenching my fists tightly while watching the news.
Seeing this, Captain Kang brought me a glass of warm water.
“They say the prosecution’s investigation will be over soon. I heard that through the prosecution people on our side.”
“The problem is that humiliating scene was broadcast on TV. The investigation will naturally end quickly. The company has 0% debt ratio; what benefit could come from accounting fraud?”
The n...
Chairman Jang Kyung-joon’s eyebrows twitched when he received the note.
And I knew very well what that twitch meant.
“It seems whoever sent this note expected me to attack Chairman Jang Kyung-joon.”
“Are you saying Young-jun actually gave you this note?”
“Yes, sir. If you want, you can even conduct a fingerprint test. Young-jun Jang’s prints will be detected on the note.”
Chairman Jang Kyung-joon clenched his fist and crushed the note.
Assemblyman Yoon Hyun-gil’s office.
True to his status as a five-term lawmaker, he had an office set up right in the heart of Gangnam.
His aides beneath him were also highly capable individuals.
“Assemblyman! You should see the article that came out in the Jeil Newspaper.”
“Bring it here.”
Wearing magnifying glasses, Assemblyman Yoon carefully read through the newspaper.
The article was about illegal political funds linked to the five-term l...
Early in the morning,
I was the first to receive the newspaper delivered to the house.
A headline that made me question my eyes occupied the front page.
[Hyundai Group Honorary Chairman Jang Young-joo Passes Away]
An event that would shake South Korea had occurred.
It was a far bigger incident than Captain Kang and I had intended, and no news related to my grandfather was reported at all.
“Sigh, he finally left us first. Why did he struggle so hard ...
Mobile games were a goldmine.
With the advantages of easy monetization and no restrictions on location, they could secure a far larger user base than PC games.
Still, the game company representatives hesitated.
I had no choice but to shake the carrot.
“Taewoo Electronics will cover all costs for developing mobile games. In return, we will take 50% ownership of the mobile games.”
“The condition of covering all development costs is appealing, but isn’t...
Taewoo Motors’ expansion into China was a huge success.
It was growing at nearly 100% annually.
Both the Taewoo Group and Shanghai Automotive were benefiting from it.
And the Shanghai faction, where Zheng Hongqin belonged, was also sharing those profits.
How could I not look favorable in such a scenario?
Zheng Hongqin even stepped forward without me having to say a word.
“If you have any other businesses you want to enter in China, just let me kno...
I attended the inauguration and returned to Korea.
Apart from sitting in the best seat and enjoying the spectacle, there was no particular benefit.
There were so many attendees that there was no time for separate conversations, and I had to be content with just firm handshakes.
But then, unexpectedly, a reaction I hadn’t anticipated began to emerge.
“Vice Chairman, the media is giving a very positive response. The fact that you’re the only Korean entrepreneur...
January 9th.
The CES event was grandly held in Las Vegas.
Electronic product companies from around the world showcased various products.
But today, all attention was focused on Apple and Steve.
It was because of a rumor that had been swirling for months.
"Apple has created a completely different type of phone."
Steve was obsessively focused on security, yet it was impossible to completely prevent prototype photos of the iPhone from leaking.
Ins...
I continued massaging my grandfather’s shoulders.
Then, suddenly, he brought up a different topic.
“But we should start the inheritance process soon. The overall group’s stock price has fallen a lot since acquiring Hyundai Semiconductor.”
My grandfather’s shoulders tensed abruptly.
While a falling stock price was advantageous for inheritance, it negatively affected everything else.
“As soon as the inheritance process is complete, we will proceed ...
In the conference room of SAVE investment company, all the key members were gathered watching TV.
Although we were drinking cola and eating popcorn as if watching a movie, we weren’t watching a movie.
We were watching the presidential election vote count broadcast, which was even more interesting than a movie.
“At this rate, Bush will win the presidency comfortably. He’s leading 54 to 3 now.”
“We still need to wait. The vote count in the South, where the ...
Various types of semiconductors are used in mobile phones.
In particular, starting from memory semiconductors to communication semiconductors, all were necessary to make smartphones.
It would not be wrong to say that to make CDMA-based smartphones, it was essential to use Qualcomm’s semiconductors.
A technological monopoly.
Qualcomm’s technological prowess was set to monopolize the CDMA market.
Before smartphones became popular, making a patent agreement...
Chairman Jang Young-joo set aside his pride. Believing that Chairman Kim Tae-jung was the only one who could save Hyundai Group now, he approached with complete humility.
“Without the help of Tae-woo Group, Hyundai Group cannot survive. Please acquire Hyundai Semiconductor.”
“I wish that were possible, of course, but the moment Tae-woo Group acquires Hyundai Semiconductor, Tae-woo Group itself could collapse. I can’t let Tae-woo Group perish trying to save Hyundai Group....
They needed to acquire Hyundai Semiconductor, but they did not want to pay an excessive amount to get it. To achieve that, Dimon had been working on this for half a year.
“How much would be a good price to acquire Hyundai Semiconductor? The CL Group sold 60% of its shares for 2.5 trillion won, right?”
“Considering that they took on the debts as well, the acquisition price should be seen as 6.5 trillion won. To buy it for a lower price, it would be better to hand over Hyund...
The aftermath of the foreign exchange crisis was still heated with the issue of insolvent companies.
The government issued a final ultimatum: it could no longer provide support and urged negotiations with the creditors.
Large companies, including Hyundai Construction, held onto the hope that ‘Surely the government wouldn’t just let us die.’
But the Financial Supervisory Service warned sternly, saying, “Even if the government wants to save you, there is no way.”<...
End of Summer
After a long time, I left work early and enjoyed some refreshments with my grandfather while watching the news.
“Tsk, tsk. Nowadays, every time you turn on the news, it's nothing but stories about North Korea.”
“Well, with the reunion of separated families being such a huge issue, there’s not much that can be done, right?”
“Even reporters are going to North Korea, and politicians keep visiting too. Haha, sometimes it really feels like reun...
The last month of 2014 arrived.
Oil prices continued to fall at an alarming rate. Unlike us, who had some room for maneuver, the United States was starting to become anxious.
It reached the point where Ambassador Kang Jun-yong of the U.S. came to see me, appearing quite urgent.
“I’m sorry if I’m disturbing you, Chairman Kim, who is always so busy.”
“Not at all. If I can meet Ambassador Kang, I’ll make time no matter how tight my schedule is.”
T...
After finishing the schedules in the United States and China, I returned to Korea.
Whenever I wrapped up an overseas business trip, I usually stopped by Captain Kang’s office to rest while eating ramen with my closest aides. However, there was no time for that now. President Han was working overnight at the Financial Tower, so instead of going to Captain Kang’s office, I headed straight to the Financial Tower.
“I noticed on the way here that the oil prices have fallen quit...
Inside the president’s office at the Blue House, a panoramic view of snow-covered Inwangsan sprawled like a painting beyond the large windows.
President Kim Jae-chun sat behind a spacious, solid wood desk, reading today’s newspaper.
[President Park Seok-won of Daeheung Venture Capital Awards Congratulatory Birth Bonus of 150 Million Won to Employee Who Gave Birth to Triplets!]
After carefully reading through the entire article printed in the newspaper, a gentle smile ...
After finishing the meeting with President Obama, I returned to the hotel.
Dimon had flown all the way to Washington and was waiting for me.
“Why did you come all this way? I could have come to see you.”
“You came all the way to America after a long time, so I thought I should move.”
I roughly took off my tie and sat down on the sofa.
Dimon politely sat cross-legged on the seat opposite me.
“The White House was in chaos because oil prices fe...
I arrived at Washington airport.
As always, David greeted me, and we quickly got into the armored vehicle and started talking.
“The White House seems desperate. They’re even sending an SOS request to Taewoo Group.”
“I heard very few groups received such an SOS request, including Taewoo Group. It seems they asked us because we had been investing in the shale gas business for a long time.”
They wouldn’t entrust just anyone with the shale companies.
Oil prices continued their downward trend for two consecutive months.
They had already fallen to around $80 per barrel, significantly impacting Taewoo Group as well.
The head of the planning office brought a report summarizing the effects of the low oil prices on each affiliate.
“Many export-specialized affiliates are benefiting from the drop in oil prices. Automobiles, semiconductors, electronics—due to lower transportation costs from cheap oil, their profits have in...