Chapter 241
Chapter 241
A lot of things were going on smoothly even while I was digging my eyes on other things for a while.
AD1 and AD2 were still lined up for reservations, and Carlos tried to keep up with production by running the factory at full capacity.
Faceit ended the acquisition of Dancing Rabbit and became a giant, covering everything from pornography to adult products.
Seoseong SB partially remodeled its production line and started production of OTK batteries. And TS Company also started partial operation.
After the battery pack was made, Chairman Im Jin-yong released a special edition of NT9 as mentioned before.
The doubled battery capacity is definitely a big strength since the smartphone specifications have been leveled up to some extent.
That’s enough to run high-capacity games all day long, and there’s no need to pack a charger or wander around looking for an outlet when you go out.
The NT9 special edition, which was supposed to produce 1,000 units, was quickly closed due to a rush of reservations, and Seoseong Electronics hastily rushed to additional production.
In addition to this, all companies that use batteries such as drones, kickboards, cameras, and laptops have inquired about the purchase of battery packs. Even NPL has contacted us directly.
Since the yield is still low, it is difficult for Suseong Electronics to produce the required quantity. As production increases, it will continue to be installed on Suseong Electronics’ smartphones and laptops.
I spoke to Chairman Im Jin-yong on this matter.
“By the way, aren’t you going on a business trip to Vietnam tomorrow?”
Seosung Electronics will build an additional display factory in Hanoi, Vietnam. The groundbreaking ceremony will also be attended by the Prime Minister of Vietnam and Chairman Im Jin-yong.
[The business trip has been canceled.]“Why?”
[I have to attend the parliamentary hearing tomorrow as a witness.]* * *
A new government is bound to have a strong driving force at the beginning of its inauguration.
The New Politics Party, which succeeded in changing the government for the first time in 10 years, focused on uncovering various corruptions that occurred in the previous administration.
It wasn’t a bonanza, and the corruption was endlessly pouring out. In the course of the investigation, various allegations raised so far were confirmed to be true, and public opinion that a hearing should be held was strengthened.
Despite opposition from the Liberal National Party lawmakers, the National Assembly held a hearing. Those involved were summoned as witnesses one after another.
The Commander-in-Chief of the Defense Security Agency, who led the comment operation and inspections of opposition members, quickly departed for the United States before the investigation began and cut off contact, and the former Prosecutor General and the former head of the National Intelligence Service also refused to appear as witnesses with all kinds of excuses.
The chief of staff, the chief of civil affairs, the chief of political affairs, and the ministers of various ministries, who were brought out reluctantly, repeated only that they did not know well.
In the process, sparks also bounced off the company.
The practice of giving bribes outright as in the previous military regime has disappeared, but the close relationship between the politicians and companies still exists.
Following politicians, this time businessmen one after another were summoned to the National Assembly.
Conglomerates representing the Republic of Korea sat side by side at the witness stand, and lawmakers shouted with various materials.
There are no businessmen who do not come out with dust, but the businessmen who appeared in the hearings are all people who shed dust when they shave.
Not only did he actively cooperate with the previous government’s policies, but there were also a number of things that could be seen as bribes depending on the point of view.
In fact, from the point of view of entrepreneurs, there was no shame. In most cases, the recent political and economic collusion is proposed first by those in power, not corporations. If you refuse, you will be penalized, so you have no choice but to follow the instructions. If you try to get something in the yard where money is already ripped off, that’s a favor.
In any case, since they didn’t do well, the presidents no matter how old or young they were, they bowed their heads and did their best to make excuses.
Seoseong Group was no exception. As the size of the company is the largest, most of the work is related to the government. They even maintained a close relationship with former President Park Si-hyung until their relationship with former President Park Si-hyung broke down due to management rights issues at Seoseong SB.
Fortunately, there was a hole to escape.
Chairman Im Jin-yong repeated the same answer to the pouring question of lawmakers.
“I don’t know much about what happened when my deceased father was president. But we will make sure this never happens again.”
The executives also handed over everything to the late Chairman Im Il-kwon. Of course, it is impossible to hold the blame on someone who has already died.
The other presidents also struggled to find their own way out.
One of the best answers is to promise to increase investment and employment. The ruling and opposition lawmakers expressed satisfaction when they said that large corporations would take the lead for economic development.
At the end of the witness interrogation against the businessmen, a voice came from the Liberal People’s Party.
It is to summon Kang Jin-hoo to the hearing.
The Liberal People’s Party, especially the pro-Park leaders, were sharpening their teeth about Kang Jin-hoo.
If you think about it, the plunging approval rating of the Liberty Korea Party, the arrest of former President Park Si-hyung, the change of government… … All of this is because of Gangjinhoo!
Therefore, the Liberal People’s Party was planning to somehow disgrace Kang Jin-hoo by calling him as a witness to the National Assembly.
* * *
Just as the Liberal National Party hates Gang Jin-hoo, most conservatives think of Gang Jin-hoo as a leftist or a pro-North Korean gang.
But the funny thing is that even the progressives don’t like Kang Jin-hoo very much.
The Korean economy has traditionally been strong in industry, but weak in finance. Perhaps because of this, financial regulations are strong, and the perception of speculative capital is not good.
However, after Kang Jin-hu, it is the most representative financial speculative capital.
He made astronomical money by betting on derivatives during the L6 crisis and on the foreign exchange market during the Brexit crisis.
After that, he invested tens of trillions of dollars in Rustwald to make Republican candidate Ronald Stamper President, and even gambled his entire fortune to stop the Big One.
The most problematic part is the location of the OTK Company corporation.
The CEO is Korean and the head office building is in Korea, so many people think of it as a Korean company, but that is just a shell. The reality is in Della Island, a tax haven.
We have established a subsidiary called K Company in Korea and are also investing in Korean startups, but only a small percentage, and most of the investment was made in the United States.
Even financial transactions were only done through Golden Gate, an American IB, not a domestic bank or securities company.
At this point, it would not be wrong to say that it has an overly friendly disposition.
Some civic groups and progressive politicians complained about it, saying, “What the hell did Jin-hoo Kang do to Korea?”
In a word, Kang Jin-hoo was far from Jin-ho’s side, except for the fact that he fought against Park Si-hyung.
Kang Jin-hoo was the richest man in Korean history. In terms of companies, Seosung Electronics is still larger, but the general opinion was that OTK Company would be surpassed within a few years.
The reason why Seosung Electronics’ stock price rose in the first place was partially due to cooperation with OTK Company.
However, the biggest difference between the two is the share ratio.
When the stakes of Chairman Im Jin-yong’s family are combined, it is less than 5 percent of the total stake of Seosung Group. On the other hand, Jinhoo Kang owns 80% of the OTK Company stake by himself.
Thanks to this, he has risen beyond Korea to become the richest person in the world.
Great wealth is of no use after death. Of course, children will inherit it, but in this case, an inheritance tax will occur and the wealth will be split according to the number of children.
However, Jinhoo Kang is now only in his 20s.
If not, I will live for more than 50 years, and I have no idea how much my assets will increase until then.
Maybe it will continue to dominate the Korean economy in the meantime?
By the way, Seosung Group is a Korean corporation and is listed on the Korean stock market. And since the National Pension Service is the largest shareholder, there are many ways to impose sanctions or control it. But OTK Company is not like that.
For these reasons, Jin-hoo Kang’s existence in the progressive camp was nothing more than a hot potato.
The New Political Party held a private supreme committee meeting.
Leaders of the party, including floor leader Jang Hyeon-jun, gathered at the meeting. The biggest problem facing the current government is that the economy is difficult.
The Korean economy has grown export-led.
Representative industries that have driven exports in the past are semiconductors, automobiles, shipbuilding, steel, and oil refining. However, most of the items except for semiconductors are currently on a downward trend. Cosmetics and pharmaceuticals have taken their place, but the proportion is not that large.
Without the semiconductor super boom, exports would have plummeted sooner.
As evidence of that, the stock prices of Seosung Electronics and SSKnics, which are the mainstays of semiconductors, are continuing to rise, while the stocks of automobiles, shipbuilding and steel companies are falling helplessly.
The problem is that the job creation effect of semiconductors is not large. Aside from rising exports and good taxes, decent jobs were on the decline.
Of these, the most serious situation is Joseon.
Ulsan and Geoje, where shipbuilding workers are concentrated, were once the regions with the highest average income in Korea. However, the situation changed with the prolonged recession in the shipbuilding industry.
The city that had been a nightmare until not long ago was reminiscent of a ghost town at night as workers who lost their jobs left. Shops were closed, and real estate prices plummeted.
It wasn’t as good as in Joseon, but the car was also in bad shape.
Contrary to the increase in overseas factories, not a single new factory has been built in Korea for over 20 years. Even so, tens of thousands of jobs were lost because GM Daehoo recently closed one of its factories.
Traditional businesses that have led the Korean economy so far are dying, but new industries are not growing due to vested interests and various regulations.
As the number of jobs dwindled, people were forced to start a business in order to make a living.
Competition for self-employment intensified, resulting in a vicious cycle of lower incomes and higher loans, but only higher rents.
This is not the fault of the current government, which was launched a few months ago, but the reality is that jobs and incomes must be increased somehow.
Rep. Hong Hyun-woo opened his mouth first. He came from an activist background and has a history of being imprisoned several times for opposing the military regime, and has been at the forefront of chaebol reform.
“We can’t wait to see how long we have corporations in tax havens and avoid taxes. We need to summon Jin-hoo Kang to the hearing and hold him accountable.”
Jang Hyun-joon, floor leader, said.
“Will CEO Kang Jin-hoo follow his advice?”(Read more @ wuxiax.com)
Rep. Hong Hyun-woo argued strongly.
“He, too, would not want to maintain an uncomfortable relationship with the new government. If we cannot move the corporation to Korea right away, at least we will see actions such as investing in Korea and increasing jobs.”
“Hmm.”
“Caros is in a situation where we have to continuously expand our factories due to the surge in sales. If you are considering entering the Korean market in the future, there are enough factors to set up a factory in Korea. As lawmakers know, wouldn’t the creation of a single automobile factory add tens of thousands of jobs in Korea?”
Members of the local constituency all shone.
Unlike the metropolitan area, there are not a few stagnant cities in the provinces. If an automobile factory is invited, the local economy will be revived at once.
Even if it is difficult for a finished car factory, even if you bring in just a few subcontractors, the residents of the district will welcome you with open arms.
Some lawmakers went to OTK Company to appeal to the constituency for investment, but all were rejected. So the hearing was a good opportunity.
Rep. Park Chang-soo had a worried expression on his face.
“Are you going to stay in America?”
Then, Representative Hong Hyun-woo said proudly.
“Korea is not a vassal state of the United States. If you say anything about it, it constitutes interference in internal affairs.”
If you think about it, the fact that the Supreme Council is having a meeting with the Supreme Council over whether to call a witness or not at the hearing speaks about what kind of existence Kang Jin-hoo is.
Maybe now is the last chance to control Kang Jin-hoo?
Floor Leader Jang Hyeon-jun tapped the table with his finger.
‘It’s not like there’s nothing wrong with stumbling and falling… … .’
* * *
I received the request to attend the hearing.
If you do not attend without a justifiable reason, you will be punished.
Taek-gyu asked.
“Your sister was right. What are you going to do?”
I said with a sigh.
“Come, I’ll go. Can you star?”
I am also an entrepreneur who fulfills his social responsibilities.
