Money Keeps Piling Up No Matter How Much I Spend

Chapter 185

Translator: Dreamscribe"Whoa......."

Chairman Kang Sung-ho and his executives couldn't close their mouths at the figures appearing on the screen.

"Is what I'm seeing right now real? There isn't some kind of error?"

"No, Chairman. What you're looking at is Apple's real-time stock price."

Apple, of all companies.

The very company that represented America, the world's greatest smartphone maker.

Thanks to that status, Apple's stock had climbed to dizzying heights without end.

Befitting the company that represented the United States, its Market Capitalization was also the largest in America.

A company worth a staggering three trillion dollars.

"And you're telling me Apple's stock price can get demolished like that?"

Yet Apple, which had been punching through the ceiling, was now in freefall.

It was true that Apple's earnings this year had dipped slightly compared to the previous year.

Shipping accidents had also delayed the launch of new products.

But even so, it was Apple. Most assessments held that even if growth had stalled, its stock would still hit a new yearly high.

Against all expectations, however, Apple was crumbling.

"And all because of this one thing?"

The ESG Association that Kwangwoon had established.

Apple had been its very first target.

The ESG Association must have been sharpening its knives, because it mobilized thousands of personnel and spent weeks investigating Apple factories around the world before issuing the lowest possible score.

They then harshly criticized Apple for focusing solely on expanding its corporate size while trampling on consumer rights.

"But there have always been plenty of rating agencies that tore into Apple like this."

"Yes. But no matter how much they screamed, nobody listened. The ESG Association is on a completely different level, though. Every assessment they publish gets pushed out through the media. Apparently they're even producing a documentary through PicPic and FaceWeb, scheduled to air on Netflix."

That was the decisive blow.

No matter how accurate an assessment might be, it only carries weight when people actually know about it.

Kwangwoon understood this, which was why they blasted every ESG Association evaluation across their own platforms.

That way, people would learn the details of those assessments, and that awareness would inevitably produce results.

"And this is the result."

The destructive power of the ESG Association exceeded all imagination.

Even Chairman Kang Sung-ho had been skeptical when he first heard that Kwangwoon was going after Apple through the ESG Association.

He had assumed that, no matter what, it would be difficult for the ESG Association to squeeze the life out of Apple.

But the power of media was this formidable.

Apple, once called the pride of America, was being transformed into a company that Americans were now ashamed of.

"CEO Jung didn't establish the ESG Association for nothing."

"No, sir. He deliberately evaluated Korean companies in Guyana first, specifically to build the ESG Association's credibility. That seems to have worked as well."

Before the ESG Association investigated Apple, they had conducted trial evaluations on companies operating in Guyana.

Naturally, the Korean companies deployed en masse to Guyana were far from pleased. The evaluation criteria were far stricter than expected, and meeting those standards required them to spend a considerable amount of money.

But what could they do?

This wasn't just anyone demanding evaluations. It was Kwangwoon.

Kwangwoon was the one that had granted them their business rights in Guyana, so they had no choice but to grit their teeth and pour money into everything from labor conditions to surrounding infrastructure, all to comply with the ESG standards.

"With this kind of firepower, no one can afford not to fall in line."

There was a reason the ESG Association had chosen Apple as its first target.

It was to demonstrate their power.

If even the seemingly impregnable fortress of Apple could be brought down, it would show that any other company could be crushed with ease.

And the effect was tremendous.

Apple's stock price, currently being shattered to pieces, proved it.

"The question is how far Kwangwoon is looking right now."

"You mean we don't know where the destination is?"

"Exactly. Whether they intend to completely destroy Apple, or whether they just want to discipline them. There's no way to tell from the current situation."

If you asked which company in the world would be most opposed to Apple going under, the answer would be Kangseong.

Kangseong and Apple were fierce competitors in the smartphone sector, but in truth, the two companies had a symbiotic relationship.

Kangseong manufactured displays, memory chips, and even semiconductors for Apple. Of course, it would never come to that, but if Apple were to shut its doors, it would be nothing short of a catastrophe.

Every IT company and parts manufacturer connected to Apple would go down like dominoes, and the financial markets would be hit with an enormous shockwave, certain to trigger a financial crisis rivaling the subprime collapse.

"From Kangseong's perspective as well, Apple shutting down is something that must never happen. They regularly purchase a significant amount from us."

That was why, even though Kangseong and Apple bickered and fought through lawsuits, they never clashed to the point of staking the fate of their companies.

Both sides knew that going that far would only result in mutual destruction.

"But watching Kwangwoon go after Apple right now... this isn't just trying to scare them. It looks like they're seriously demolishing Apple's brand image, trying to drag it all the way down to rock bottom."

In other words, if things went any further, Apple could suffer irreversible damage. Kangseong, as a competitor, should have been celebrating, but it was hardly something to rejoice over.

Even if Apple's overwhelming smartphone sales declined, that didn't necessarily translate into gains for Kangseong. Instead, reduced demand for displays and semiconductors would shrink Kangseong's revenue right along with it.

"Kwangwoon must also know that Apple taking that level of damage would be far from good for them."

"So what you're saying is... mediation is needed?"

"Yes. It's possible they're waiting for Kangseong to step in."

"How would we do that?"

"Kangseong received a separate evaluation from the ESG Association, didn't we? It was less intense than what Apple went through, but we still made improvements based on their feedback. If we leverage that track record and take responsibility for all of Apple's components and manufacturing, wouldn't that give Kwangwoon the justification they need?"

Now that the ESG Association's scathing evaluation was out, Kwangwoon had been spreading the news far and wide through the media, charging ahead without brakes.

But Kwangwoon also knew that if this continued, Apple would be in real danger, and that would shake global financial markets.

In other words, they knew they had to stop at some point.

And to do that, they needed justification.

"Kangseong becomes that justification."

It was an excellent idea.

"But wouldn't that just benefit Kangseong? We'd be squeezing even more money out of Apple."

"Yes. We could extract additional revenue on the order of trillions of won annually."

"Exactly. So what's in it for Kwangwoon?"

There was one thing Kwangwoon stood to gain.

Demonstrating the ESG Association's power to the entire world.

But that was it.

"This is Kwangwoon we're talking about. They'll surely find some other avenue to secure their interests. They might demand something from us as well."

Kang Sung-ho nodded at those words.

Every encounter with Kwangwoon up to this point had been the same.

They never made a deal that left them at a disadvantage.

* * *

"Apple?"

"Yes. Kangseong says they're planning to negotiate with Apple to restructure their factories. So they're also trying to smooth things over with the ESG Association, whose current assessment has been severe......"

The ESG Association's influence was far greater than I had imagined.

Enough to shake Apple, of all companies.

The platforms we ran at Kwangwoon certainly had significant reach, but even I hadn't anticipated this level of impact.

"About the ESG matter......"

But the ESG side of things wasn't something I particularly wanted to get involved with.

The evaluation standards they put forward were suffocating.

There was no need for me to step in personally.

"Tell them to work it out between headquarters and Kangseong."

"Ah, yes CEO-nim."

To be honest, it was just too complicated, and I didn't want to deal with it.

"And these are documents sent from the Saudi side."

"Saudi?"

"Yes. They've been distributing these heavily across the Asian region. You remember, right? Saudi Arabia was actively seeking investment for their plan to build Neom City."

Back then, Saudi Arabia had sent us a letter of intent as well.

But we hadn't invested.

"They're soliciting investment again on the same matter. Neom City isn't progressing according to the original blueprints as you predicted, CEO-nim. Still, Saudi Arabia has been aggressively investing to develop infrastructure and completely transform the entire country."

It was true that Saudi Arabia had undergone tremendous change compared to the past.

Under Hamud Salman, who currently held power, a wide range of investments were driving major transformation across the nation.

"Neom City is still underway. Building it according to the original blueprints is realistically impossible, but their ambition to make it the world's greatest city hasn't faded, and they're spending an enormous amount of money."

That was precisely why they were pushing investment solicitation so aggressively.

The money Saudi Arabia had on hand was gradually reaching its limits.

"What does the ESG side say?"

"They haven't conducted an evaluation yet."

"Then let's proceed once their evaluation comes through."

The establishment of the ESG Association had created an investment guideline.

The principle was simple: before investing anywhere new, check the ESG evaluation first.

I knew the ESG standards were extremely demanding and strict, but the whole reason that organization had been created was to build a better society and environment.

So even if it took some extra time and the criteria were tough, I wanted to lead by example.

"Lastly, this was sent from headquarters. But there's quite a lot of material."

"How much...... Oh God."

I let out a gasp at the sheer volume of documents the staff carried in.

It looked like someone had written a dissertation. Hundreds of pages of booklets were stacked up like a mountain.

"Apparently it's compiled research on which directions Kwangwoon should invest going forward. Since the scenarios are organized by sector, the volume is substantial."

"This isn't just substantial, it's excessive."

"That's fair."

What kind of era are we living in?

An age where people won't read anything unless it comes in a three-line summary.

Yet this looked like it could fill about thirty volumes.

"It seems to get bigger every year."

"Yes. But headquarters has been investing each year per your directives, sir, and the company keeps growing in size."

On top of that, part of this was a bad habit I'd started from the beginning.

Every year I received materials from headquarters and set the overall direction, so naturally they kept sending me these reports.

"......."

I sat down and began reviewing the materials.

I had groaned about the sheer volume, but there was really no need to worry.

Because.

'Here it comes.'

After reading through a certain amount, my Intuition, having finished absorbing the information, would send me a signal like this.

'Red. This is definitely one to avoid.'

I closed that document without bothering to read further.

In the past, I used to read through everything meticulously, but I knew by now that following the judgment my Intuition provided was far more accurate and faster than my own analysis.

After repeating this process several times.

"......?"

This set of materials felt different from the very first impression.

[Investment Focused on Sports and Culture.]

It appeared to be a proposal for more active investment in Korean sports, K-pop, K-dramas, K-games, and the like.

As for domestic sports teams, Kwangwoon already operated a few.

We were running a professional baseball team, and in football, we operated Tottenham overseas. Feeling that we were neglecting the domestic scene, we had also acquired a team in the second division.

But this proposal was suggesting we go a step further, investing even more heavily in sports and Korean culture to commercialize them as our core products.

"......."

Beyond that, the document was packed with complex details crammed into every corner.

Before long, an energy began seeping out from its pages.

"......!"

This time, it wasn't red. It was gold.

In all the years I'd been deciding investment directions, I didn't think I had ever seen a light radiate this powerfully.

There was no need to deliberate any further.

Thud!

I closed the heavy document immediately.

Even stronger golden light was now spilling out from it.

"Please send this to headquarters."

* * *

"ESG? They're sending that to Saudi Arabia?"

"Yes. He said he won't invest without the ESG Association's evaluation."

The Apple crisis had confirmed the ESG's power.

But Jung Jin-ho wasn't content with that. He intended to position the ESG as a global evaluation standard going forward.

The fact that he was already applying these strict criteria to Saudi Arabia proved as much.

"There's no way Saudi Arabia would accept that. They have far too many issues."

With its harsh working conditions fully exposed, Saudi Arabia would naturally be far from welcoming of an ESG evaluation.

"Then it's safe to assume this was a refusal."

"A refusal, but also a strategic check, it seems."

"A check?"

"Yes, Chairman. This is a document CEO Jung sent from the field. It outlines where Kwangwoon should invest going forward, the business direction he's decided on."

Hwang Dae-woon had been waiting for exactly this.

Every year, Jung Jin-ho made his decisions based on the materials headquarters prepared.

"He was quick again this time."

"Yes. When we deliver the materials, he makes his decision the same day."

How he managed to review that mountain of material and reach a decision so quickly was a mystery.

But what mattered was that Kwangwoon had never once lost money by investing according to Jung Jin-ho's word.

"But this time, the investment content is quite interesting. He chose sports and culture, and there's considerable overlap with Saudi Arabia."

"With Saudi Arabia?"

"Yes. Saudi Arabia has been pouring significant money into sports recently, hasn't it? Football, golf, F1, even esports. They've been hosting separate leagues and tournaments with enormous prize pools. And at the end of last year, they brought Ronaldo into the Saudi league."

There was no shortage of complaints from the sports world about this.

People were saying Saudi Arabia was using money to steal fans away.

But regardless of what anyone said, Saudi Arabia continued its aggressive investment.

"And our investment proposal is the same. Pour massive amounts of money into sports to build a sports market that doesn't take a back seat to any other country."

In other words, bring famous figures from overseas into the Korean market en masse, promote heavily, and draw attention with high tournament prize money.

"So we'd be competing with Saudi Arabia?"

"Yes. The document itself states that competition with Saudi Arabia is inevitable."

"Competing with Saudi Arabia....... That's a bit uncomfortable."

Saudi Arabia, of all places.

A globally renowned big spender.

The Sovereign Wealth Fund they operated alone was worth over 1,000 trillion won.

There was a reason major corporations rushed to Saudi Arabia and bowed their heads.

"But the fact that CEO Jung approved competition with Saudi Arabia means......"

"We have absolutely no reason to be intimidated by them."

"Yes. It seems he's determined that we actually have the advantage. Our media capabilities are overwhelming, K-culture has become famous through Netflix, and K-pop continues to enjoy explosive popularity."

In other words, Kwangwoon's weight class had reached a level where there was no longer any need to fear Saudi Arabia.

"So basically, Korea is going to position itself at the center of sports and culture?"

"Yes. And under the Kwangwoon name, at that."

If this scenario played out as planned, the synergy with Kwangwoon's existing subsidiaries would be enormous.

"The problem is we have to get over this massive hurdle first. Jin-ho must have read through all of this and understood that we need to nail this before anything else falls into place, right?"

"Yes. He clearly read through everything carefully before sending it. He must have given his approval on the assumption that we would successfully pull off this negotiation."

Hwang Dae-woon let out a brief sigh.

The mountain they had to climb from the very start was far too high.

"......But will he actually come?"

"Korea's standing has certainly reached a different level thanks to Kwangwoon...... but honestly, I'm not sure. There are a lot of domestic regulations that need to be overhauled. On top of that, there are rumors that the Americans are currently negotiating with this player."

"It'll be tough."

"Yes. It really won't be easy."

But this wasn't just anyone's approval. Jung Jin-ho had signed off on this document.

That meant headquarters had to deliver exactly what it outlined.

No matter how impossible it seemed.

"Contact the strategy team. Tell them to mobilize every resource we have and make this happen first. This is an investment Jin-ho approved. We can't afford to fail at the starting line. Whether he's in America or Saudi Arabia, bring him here. No matter what!"

"Yes sir."

After sending the executives out, Hwang Dae-woon fidgeted with the document sitting in front of him.

Among all domestic sports, the first objective was to elevate the K-League one level higher, transforming it into a world-class super league.

That was the scenario's primary goal.

But to achieve it, they needed one powerful strike.

A single blow that could electrify the entire world.

[Pursuit of Lionel Messi's entry into the K-League.]

****

TL Note: Hi, I have picked up a new work by the author of "I Was Mistaken as a Monstrous Genius Actor".

Title: The Crazy Mercenary Commander Goes to Work in the Entertainment Industry

Link: https://woopread.com/series/the-crazy-mercenary-commander-goes-to-work-in-the-entertainment-industry

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