We expressed our intention to invest in dozens of startups. However, not all of them accepted the proposals.
Some found alternative investors, while others were acquired by different companies.
Caros also politely declined our proposal. The reason was that it would be difficult for them to handle the investment amount and style they wanted.
If it were another company, we might have withdrawn the proposal at that point. There are plenty of other companies to invest in, after all.
But with Caros, I felt a strong desire to meet them.
Hyunjoo, our sister, sent a proposal stating that they have sufficient investment funds and intentions to invest again. Eventually, the COO from there contacted us and a meeting was scheduled.
The two who came from Silicon Valley to Incheon were Ryan Gates, the COO of Caros, and Sergei Yobanovich, the CFO.
As indicated by having a COO (Chief Operating Officer) and CFO (Chief Financial Officer), they were on a different scale compared to the startups we had met before.
Ryan, who appeared to be in his late thirties, had a tired expression likely from a long flight. His thin face suggested a somewhat sensitive personality.
In contrast to the slender Ryan, Sergei was tall with a broad build. Just by appearance, he gave off a Russian mafia vibe or perhaps a KGB agent.
As soon as Ryan sat down, he asked, “Who is the decision-maker from OTK Company?”
Hyunjoo straightforwardly replied, “I have been delegated full authority.”
“Do I need to get separate approvals?”
“No need. My decision is equivalent to OTK Company’s decision.”
Because all the OTK Company’s management and shareholders were present in this meeting.
He nodded as if things were going well.
“Then, let’s get to the point. Caros currently needs an investment amount of $100 million. Can you do it?”
Taekgyu asked me in a surprised tone, “1 billion dollars? That much?”
Up until now, we had mostly invested amounts below 10 billion, with nothing exceeding 20 billion.
But here, they were demanding five times that amount.
1 billion dollars is equivalent to 110 billion Korean won. It’s excessively large as an investment amount for a single company.
Hyunjoo raised her glasses and said, “If you’re asking about financial capacity, it is very possible.”
Ryan and Sergei seemed surprised by her statement. They had come expecting something, but it seemed they hadn’t set high hopes.
“Before that, we would like to hear an explanation about the company.”
“Sure.”
Sergei connected the laptop he brought to the projector in the meeting room. He then began explaining as the screen lit up.
“In the past, cars were machines powered by internal combustion engines. However, they are now transitioning into sophisticated electronic products.”
Industries change with technological advancements. Business models that were promising in the past may suddenly become obsolete.
Kodak, once a leader in film cameras, failed as digital cameras took over. Nokia and Motorola, giants in feature phones, missed the smartphone trend and faced downfall. There are countless such examples.
To avoid this fate, one must constantly innovate in technology and adapt to changing environments.
We are now in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, where every industry is transforming. The automotive industry will not be an exception.
So, how will cars evolve in the future?
There are already answers to this question. Currently, the focus in this field lies in two areas: electric cars and autonomous vehicles.
While electric cars represent a hardware shift from combustion engines to batteries, autonomous vehicles signify a software shift from human drivers to machines.
Autonomous driving is crucial for the cars of the future. That’s why numerous automotive and IT companies are diving into its development.
5 years ago from now.
The United States’ largest e-commerce company, AMZ, invested 41 percent of capital, South Korea’s Eun Sung Motors invested 40 percent, and Japan’s electronics company, Itachi, invested 19 percent to establish a joint venture company.
That company was called Carso.
They planned to combine their strengths across borders and industries to dominate the self-driving car market.
About a year later, Itachi suffered a setback in the home appliance sector losing to South Korea’s CL Electronics, and faced a management crisis after being defeated by Seong Electronics in the fiercely competitive smartphone market.
In the process of downsizing its business areas, Itachi sold all of its shares in Carso, with Eun Sung Motors acquiring 10 percent of it, surpassing AMZ to become the largest shareholder.
However, the year before last, AMZ also gave up on self-driving car development. They deemed further investments meaningless in a situation where competitors were already ahead.
Eun Sung Motors was in a dilemma. The reason for establishing the joint venture was to expect synergy in collaboration with IT companies.
However, with those companies withdrawing, what should they do?
Enter Han Chanyoung, a young man in his mid-30s who rose to the position of executive in a short time by proving his abilities, not because he was an outstanding talent with extraordinary abilities but because he was the eldest son of Eun Sung Motors Group Chairman Han Mingu.
As they say, having capable parents is also a skill.
Nevertheless, Han Chanyoung decided to take charge of future car development.
As a successor who showed interest in leading the group in the future, group-wide support followed. Eun Sung Motors bought the stake sold by AMZ, increasing its ownership to 86 percent.
In essence, Carso became a subsidiary of Eun Sung Motors.
Despite the huge investment, no significant results were seen, and shareholders began to doubt Han Chanyoung’s management capabilities.
Most of all, it was difficult to find a justification to maintain the investment.
To avoid the stigma of business failure, Han Chanyoung moved to a successful advanced car development department, and Eun Sung Motors decided to sell off Carso, which was nothing more than a liability.
However, they said that in the past they didn’t know, but at this point, there was nowhere suitable to sell it.
Companies like ENPFL, Google, automotive companies like Daimler Group, Volkswagen Group, Toyota Group, were already developing autonomous vehicles on their own, and Caros wasn’t attractive enough to justify a large acquisition.
After several failed attempts to sell, Eunsung Motors resorted to their final option.
They decided to sell off Caros’ various patents and core technologies to recover at least some of the investment funds.
If that happened, Caros would be left as an empty shell.
Caros’ executives and employees vehemently protested, but they couldn’t stop the parent company’s decision.
CEO Deril, while delaying the patent sell-off, personally sought other investors.
From Eunsung Motors’ perspective, it was more beneficial to find an investor willing to pay the fair price rather than selling off at a low value.
Caros requested investments from global investment banks, private equity funds, and sovereign wealth funds.
Golden Gate also reviewed the proposal but rejected it, determining that it was not profitable relative to the investment amount. The proposal circled back to startups along with other proposals.
After hearing the explanation, Taekgyu blinked.
“What’s all this talk about?”
Hyunjoo put down her pen and said, “To sum it up, Eunsung Motors currently owns the majority of Caros shares and wants to sell that stake to recover investment funds. $100 million is the amount Eunsung Motors demands for the stake sale.”
Taekgyu asked again, “So, if we invest $100 million, that money goes into Eunsung Motors’ pocket?”
“That’s right.”
“And if we don’t invest?”
“Eunsung Motors will sell off the patents and core technologies. In that case, the amount they can recoup wouldn’t even reach $50 million.”
At Hyunjoo’s words, the guy seemed puzzled and said, “What? So in the end, Eunsung Motors is the only one benefiting from this, right?”
“Exactly.”
Taekgyu asked, looking at me.
“Did you know about this company?”
I nodded.
“Of course.”
I must have read the proposal over a hundred times. I could recite it verbatim, down to the percentages.
“Hey, that’s not it. Let’s talk. Meet me outside first.”
Before I could respond, Taekgyu quickly got up and left the meeting room.
Ryan and Sergei, who couldn’t understand Korean, looked puzzled by Taekgyu’s sudden departure.
I also stood up.
Hyunjoo spoke to the two of them.
“I’ll have a brief chat with them and be right back.”
***
After leaving the meeting room, we gathered in Hyunjoo’s room. It was a suite with a separate bedroom and living room. The table was cluttered with ashtrays full of cigarette butts and scattered documents.
With all the OTK Company shareholders gathered here, it felt like a shareholders’ meeting, somewhat. Except for Ellie, of course.
The agenda was about Caros.
Taekgyu exclaimed excitedly.
“Are you out of your mind? Why did you agree to meet with that kind of company?”
Perplexed, I asked.
“Why are you getting worked up? If anyone’s angry, it should be me.”
Taekgyu looked flustered.
“Well, I mean… Anyway, they’re not suitable. Why would you get involved in something good for Eun Sung Corporation? I can’t stand seeing them succeed.”
Ellie, who was listening to the conversation, asked Hyunjoo as if she didn’t understand English.
“Is there any problem with Eunsung Corporation?”
“Ask Jinhoo directly.”
Her gaze turned towards me.
I asked Ellie, “Do you know what Eunsung Corporation does?”
“Of course. It’s the largest automobile manufacturer in Korea and ranks 6th in the world.”
“It’s not about that.”
Eunsung Group, the 2nd largest in South Korean industry.
Eunsung Corporation assembles finished cars, Eunsung Steel supplies steel, Eunsung MD develops and manufactures parts, Eunsung RT manufactures railways, Glomass handles logistics, and Renoir is an advertising and marketing company, and so on.
If you combine the market capitalization of subsidiaries under Eunsung Group, it exceeds 150 trillion.
But it doesn’t end there.
There are many first, second, and third-tier subcontractors. While many are not owned by Eunsung, they are practically under its umbrella.
In short, Eunsung Group is a giant manufacturing kingdom centered around Eunsung Corporation. It is a global company with production bases worldwide, but overwhelmingly dominates the Korean market in sales volume.
Its domestic market share is as high as 70%, almost like a monopoly. There may be controversies about preferential treatment for domestic sales, but viewed positively, it is a Korean company to be proud of.
However…
I sighed and said, “They are just bastards.”
Ellie was startled by the curse that came out of my mouth.
“What?”
In conclusion, our house was ruined because of Eunsung Corporation.
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