Vice Chairman Im Jin-yong placed the coffee he brought on the table.
“I heard you like coffee,” Taek-gyu said.
“I don’t drink coffee.”
“One is hot chocolate.”
“Oh! Thank you.”
“I’ll enjoy it.”
It seemed he had a decent understanding of our preferences.
Taek-gyu quickly drank the hot chocolate, and I sipped the coffee. Vice Chairman Im Jin-yong slowly took a sip of his coffee and said,
“It seems like quite a remarkable connection. During the L6 incident, I knew someone had invested in put options, but I never expected it would be OTK Company.”
“Ah! That’s right. If we hadn’t discontinued the product back then, we would have been in serious trouble.”
Thinking back, that was the start of our investment journey. If we hadn’t managed to earn money back then, we probably wouldn’t have invested in startups later on, and during Brexit a year later, we would just be twiddling our thumbs.
“Even now, it’s dizzying to think about. If we had mismanaged it, we would have had to completely withdraw from the smartphone business.”
Fortunately, we handled it well. We immediately discontinued the product without fearing immediate losses and initiated exchanges and refunds.
That decision turned out to be lucky for us.
If he hadn’t made that move, we would have lost over 10 billion won. Even if we had managed to invest and make some money with the remaining funds, it would have taken us at least five more years to reach this point.
The person who made that discontinuation decision back then is right in front of me, Vice Chairman Im Jin-yong.
“In the end, I believe that decision was beneficial for both sides,” he remarked.
Taek-gyu nodded in agreement.
“That’s right. After that, Seosung Electronics also hit the jackpot.”
Despite the nightmare of L6, the subsequent launch of L7 took off like a rocket, reviving the IM division, and the booming global economy caused semiconductor demand to skyrocket.
Thanks to that, the stock price, which had stagnated around 1.3 million won after the explosion, is now over 2 million won, and the market capitalization has surpassed 300 trillion won.
“Now that I think about it, there’s one more connection between us. Do you know what it is?”
While Im Jin-yong was born into one of Korea’s top conglomerate families and raised as a successor, I was born and raised in an ordinary middle-class family.
I wondered if there was any real connection between us, but…
“I heard you graduated from the Western History Department at Korea University.”
At my words, Vice Chairman Im Jin-yong laughed and nodded.
“I see you know.”
How could I not know?
Vice Chairman Im donates a large scholarship to his alma mater every year. When I was a student, the current students also referred to him as “the senior from a conglomerate.”
By the way, there are quite a few “senior conglomerates” from Korea University.
While science and engineering or arts fields have many prestigious schools like KAIST or Pohang University of Science and Technology, humanities, linguistics, economics, business, and law have traditionally been strong at Korea University. Therefore, many offspring of conglomerates have enrolled there since long ago (though studying abroad is trending nowadays).
Taek-gyu said in admiration, “Oh! What a connection. Then, since Jin-hoo is a junior, you can just call him junior comfortably.”
“…Huh?”
Suddenly? Our majors are different, and I haven’t even graduated yet!
Taek-gyu confidently said, “In South Korea, it’s all about blood relations, connections, and academic ties. At least we’ve got one.”
Vice Chairman Im asked with a smile, “Is that alright?”
I nodded.
“That would be convenient. I’ll call you senior, too.”
I’m not particularly invested in such formalities, but it is true that we have a senior-junior relationship.
Taek-gyu added a remark.
“My sister also graduated from Korea University.”
“Yes, I believe Director Oh Hyun-joo graduated from the Department of Economics.”
“Since my biological sister is a junior, I’ll also call you ‘senior.’”
“…”
What kind of logic is this?
Vice Chairman Im Jin-yong looked indifferent.
“Honestly, I’ve wanted to meet for a long time. I even considered visiting the OTK Company building.”
“Were there any reasons you couldn’t?”
“Because there are too many eyes watching in Korea.”
If we had met, it would likely have made the news. Even if we met for no reason, the purpose would have been widely speculated.
Taek-gyu said, “We could have just called or video chatted.”
“But nothing compares to meeting in person.”
When the telephone was first invented, people thought meetings would drastically decrease. Yet, that hasn’t been the case.
The main reason is that the content of a conversation takes up less than 10 percent of the communication. The rest consists of non-verbal elements such as eye contact, facial expressions, tone, and gestures.
Video calls do convey these non-verbal cues better than regular phone calls, but still, nothing beats face-to-face interactions.
That’s why, despite all the advancements in communication technology, people still fly to the other side of the world for business.
I took a sip of my coffee.
Wasn’t it said that not meeting in Korea was due to the many eyes watching? Did he deliberately come from the U.S. to see me?
Even now, he came alone without bodyguards or staff. Does this mean there is a reason to conceal the fact that we’re meeting?
“May I ask what brings you to us?”
Vice Chairman Im Jin-yong put down his coffee and said, “I’ve come to ask for help from my juniors.”
The vice chairman of the leading Seosung Group is asking me for help?
Taek-gyu asked, “What kind of help?”
Vice Chairman Im Jin-yong’s expression turned serious.
“Before we discuss anything, there’s an important fact I should share with you first.”
An important fact?
We waited in silence for him to continue.
After a brief pause, Vice Chairman Im Jin-yong sighed and said, “It seems my father will soon pass away.”
***
Im Il-kwon is the third son of Im Young-cheol, the founder of Seosung Group.
Despite having older brothers, Chairman Im Young-cheol chose his third son, Im Il-kwon, as his successor. At that time, he faced opposition from both the eldest and second sons, but it later proved to be the right decision.
Until the 1970s, Seosung Electronics simply produced and sold home appliances, having received technology transfers from Japanese electronics companies.
Im Young-cheol realized that if things continued this way, Seosung Electronics would never escape the shadow of Japanese firms. He decided to enter the semiconductor industry.
DRAM development was technically challenging and required immense investment. Most related patents were held by American and Japanese companies.
It was not an easy market for an ordinary electronics company with insufficient technology and capital to enter.
Chairman Im Young-cheol acquired a semiconductor company on the brink of bankruptcy and embarked on DRAM development. While everyone opposed the decision, only Im Il-kwon actively supported his father’s choice, and Im Young-cheol entrusted him with the task.
The following years were filled with hardships.
Instead of profits, billions in losses piled up. Each year, the profits from the entire Seosung Group were used to cover the semiconductor division’s losses.
A pervasive sense of crisis emerged. If things went wrong, not just Seosung Electronics but the entire group could collapse. Japanese electronics companies scoffed, predicting that Seosung Electronics would fail within a few years.
Though it might be hard to believe now, until the early 1990s, the global electronics market was dominated by Japanese firms such as Sony, Panasonic, Hitachi, and Toshiba.
However, just ten years after entering the semiconductor market, Seosung Electronics rose to the top of the memory semiconductor industry. By the 1990s, they began to overtake Japanese firms, eventually dominating the NAND flash sector as well.
Japanese electronics companies, which had mocked Seosung Electronics at that time, have either gone bankrupt or dwindled to small enterprises.
In contrast, Seosung Electronics grew to become the world’s largest IT manufacturer, based on its immense success in semiconductors.
Its market capitalization is now larger than that of Japan’s top ten electronics firms combined, even surpassing Toyota, Japan’s leading company.
Though it may not match the likes of Alibaba or WeChat in China, it ranks among the top five in all of Asia. Considering South Korea’s population and economic power, this is an astonishing achievement.
Had bold decisions not been made at that time, Seosung Electronics might have disappeared or remained a mediocre company. It could have even been acquired by Chinese capital like Sharp.
Chairman Im Il-kwon has dedicated his life to nurturing the current Seosung Group and Seosung Electronics. Despite his old age, he continues to lead various group issues, demonstrating his capabilities.
A few years ago, he eventually collapsed due to old age and was hospitalized. Contrary to expectations that he would quickly recover, his hospitalization lasted longer, and his eldest son, Im Jin-yong, stepped in to manage the company in his father’s place.
“His condition is currently very critical. He has decided not to receive life-sustaining treatment, so it will likely be difficult for him to endure for long. At most, he may last about two weeks.”
The power of modern medicine is truly astonishing; even the most critical patients can somehow have their hearts beating and blood circulating.
Whether we can truly consider that state as being alive is debatable, but nonetheless, we can delay death for as long as possible. However, as he mentioned, Chairman Im Il-kwon has consistently expressed his refusal of life-sustaining treatment.
“I’m not sure what words of comfort to offer,” said Vice Chairman Im Jin-yong calmly.
“I’ve been mentally prepared for this for a long time, so I’m fine.”
Since being hospitalized, Chairman Im Il-kwon has not given any media interviews, and no one other than medical staff and family has been allowed near his hospital room.
As a result, rumors spread about him being in a vegetative state or already deceased. Regardless, opinions were dominated by the belief that a return to management would be difficult and that he wouldn’t last much longer.
Though I had somewhat anticipated this, hearing it directly from him was shocking.
No matter how rich or high in status one is, death cannot be averted. This simple and obvious truth weighed heavily on me.
“Is it alright for you to share this with us?”
Chairman Im Il-kwon’s health issues are extremely sensitive. If news of his death spreads, it would send shockwaves throughout not only the Seosung Group but the entire stock market.
“Eventually, everyone will know. Although I have been preparing for this inevitability for a long time, various issues will arise after he passes.”
Even for an ordinary family, a father’s passing is a significant event.
Leaving aside the emotional challenges, there are countless tasks from funeral arrangements to inheritance issues.
The situation becomes even more complicated with substantial inheritances. It’s not uncommon for siblings to argue at funerals over estate distribution.
How much more difficult must it be for a chaebol?
Chairman Im Il-kwon’s wealth is approximately 20 trillion won. He has consistently held the top spot in South Korea’s wealth rankings, though unfortunately last year, he had to relinquish that position to a newly wealthy individual due to Brexit.
“What does ‘various problems’ mean?”
Vice Chairman Im Jin-yong answered my question simply.
“It’s a management dispute.”
“……. ”
As I suspected, I had a hunch about it when I brought it up earlier.
Im Il-kwon had two sons and a daughter with his wife, Yeon So-hyeon.
Although he collapsed suddenly, he was already of advanced age. Due to this, he had been methodically preparing for succession and inheritance for some time.
His eldest daughter, Im Soo-mi, was assigned the hotel and duty-free business (Ceylon Hotel). The younger daughter, Im Soo-kyung, was given the fashion and resort business (Neverland). The youngest son, Im Seung-yong, took on the plant and heavy industry (Seosung Engineering, Seosung Heavy Industries).
And for the eldest son and successor, Im Jin-yong, he was assigned the holding company, Seosung Materials, along with various affiliates, including the group’s core, Seosung Electronics.
Taek-gyu asked, “Surely not Seosung Electronics?”
Vice Chairman Im Jin-yong shook his head.
“The electronic control isn’t really an issue.”
As far as I knew, Vice Chairman Im Jin-yong held less than 1% of Seosung Electronics’ shares. Chairman Im Il-kwon owned about 4%, and even including the shares held by related parties, it amounted to just under 20%.
In contrast, foreign investors—including private equity funds, sovereign wealth funds, hedge funds, and asset management firms—held over 50%.
However, given the significant friendly holding shares and the board’s unanimous support for Im Jin-yong, the likelihood of getting embroiled in a management dispute was extremely low.
“Then what is the problem?”
“The issue lies with Seosung SB.”
Taek-gyu looked at me with a question.
“That’s the battery company, right? The one that supplied the exploding L6 batteries?”
“Exactly.”
Seosung SB is the company with the world’s top technology and mass production system in the lithium-ion battery sector.
As a subsidiary, the electronic devices sold by Seosung Electronics, such as smartphones and laptops, are equipped with batteries from Seosung SB.
Not only do they excel in small battery technology, but their large battery technology is also of world-class standard, supplying electric vehicle batteries to several automakers, including BMW. (The BMW i8 that Taek-gyu bought is also equipped with a Seosung SB battery.)
Considering the expected expansion of the electric vehicle market in the future, the growth potential of Seosung SB seems quite significant.
“Who is after the management rights?”
“My mother and younger brother.”
It’s not uncommon for wealthy families to fight over the management rights of their subsidiaries. Perhaps that’s why I didn’t feel particularly moved by the story.
What I’m curious about is why they are trying to drag me into their family feud.
“And behind it, there’s Eunsung Motors.”
“…….”
Vice Chairman Im Jin-yong smiled as he observed my expression.
