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 know anytime. I'll help you with all my power."
"I was actually thinking of entering the Chinese IT sector."
"Isn't the IT industry struggling because of the dot-com bubble and all that?"
"Since it's a tough time, shouldn't we be more proactive to establish a foundation?"
"Haha, I like your spirit. After dealing with so many pale, weak young people, meeting you is refreshing."
Zheng Hongqin poured me a glass of baijiu.
After taking a sip, I continued the conversation.
"The sector we're entering this time is gaming."
"A big company like Taewoo Group making games? That's surprising."
"We don't make games ourselves. We just own companies that distribute games."
"But doesn't a big company have some pride? Games seem a bit beneath you."
The attitude toward gaming was no different in China or Korea.
Older generations often treated games like children's toys.
"Think of it as just a primer to build the IT foundation."
"Hm, well, since Taewoo Group is starting it, it's not really my business to interfere. So, how can I help?"
"I would like help with the game license—'panhò'."
"That much I can certainly do. If it's a game you bring, I'll make sure it gets the panhò without fail."
Panhò was a sort of permit.
Without receiving a panhò, games could not be officially distributed in China.
Nowadays, obtaining a panhò wasn't that difficult, but even just ten years ago, game companies had to struggle greatly to get one.
But I hadn't come all this way just to get a panhò.
I was planning a bigger picture, and for that, Zheng Hongqin's power was necessary.
"Could you grant me the exclusive rights to all game panhòs for games released from Korea?"
"Haha, you mean to say that Korean games can only enter China with your permission?"
"Is that difficult?"
"It's not impossible, but it looks like it might cause some issues."
Exclusivity was a sensitive matter.
Even if it was limited to Korean games, the word "exclusive rights" alone could cause dangerous trouble.
"I'm not asking for exclusivity alone. I want to create a joint venture to manage it together."
"Ah, that means sharing profits. Do you really think games will be profitable?"
"If we can form a joint venture with a good Chinese distributor, I can guarantee profitability."
Zheng Hongqin had already had success with joint ventures.
When I mentioned a joint venture this time, he showed great interest.
Though exclusivity could pose problems, money made the issue seem less significant.
"With which company do you want to form the joint venture? I hope it would be a company close to us."
"I've narrowed down a few companies. Could you choose the one you prefer?"
I took out a paper listing several Chinese game distribution companies.
Zheng Hongqin called his aides, consulted with them, and circled one company.
"This company looks good. It's a firm connected to us."
"You mean Tencent. I was also planning to prioritize forming a joint venture with Tencent."
"Haha, as expected of you. You understand our intentions well. But what about the shares?"
"Would it be alright if Tencent holds 51% and Taewoo Group holds 49%?"
"Aren't you losing too much in this deal? Hmm, how about this? I will help you buy Tencent's shares."
He would go this far for me?
I hadn't expected Zheng Hongqin to think of me like this.
Tencent was a company that would become number one in market capitalization in China.
"Since you're willing to help, I will gladly accept."
"I've heard Tencent is struggling because of the dot-com bubble. Would you consider acquiring about 30% of the shares? If it's a burden, you can lower the percentage a bit."
"Not 30%—I'm thinking of acquiring 40%. Since you're helping, I should act boldly as well, shouldn't I?"
"Haha, you really are different from other young men. I'll help you acquire Tencent shares at the lowest possible price."
An unexpected windfall had rolled in.
This was the moment when all the money I had given to Zheng Hongqin no longer felt wasted.
***
The next day,
Zheng Hongqin's power was truly remarkable.
In just one day, I was able to meet Ma Huateng, one of Tencent's founders.
"I was introduced by the elder. I am Ma Huateng of Tencent."
"Nice to meet you. I am Kim Min-jae, Vice Chairman of Taewoo Group. The elder told me to maintain a good relationship with Tencent."
"I've heard about it too. I didn't know Taewoo Group had such a strong relationship with the elder."
Ma Huateng showed a grateful expression.
He seemed deeply touched that Zheng Hongqin, a powerful figure, was backing him.
"We plan to establish a joint venture for game distribution. Tencent would hold 51% of the shares."
"Thank you for the offer, but as you know, the company is struggling quite a bit due to the dot-com bubble."
He was saying that Tencent didn't have the capacity to form a joint venture.
That was my mistake.
I should have brought up the Tencent share acquisition before mentioning the joint venture.
"So we are planning to acquire Tencent's shares. How much would it take to acquire around 40%?"
"40% is difficult, but how about acquiring 33% for $33 million?"
Only $33 million?
In just ten years, that $33 million would soar to a value exceeding $100 billion.
Even with conservative estimates, it would yield over four thousand times the investment—how could I refuse?
It was a deal that even made me want to pay more.
"How about this? Taewoo Group will bear all $40 million plus the funds necessary to establish the joint venture in exchange for acquiring 40% of the shares."
"Really? If you do that, it will breathe new life into our company."
"Taewoo Group is moving forward with various IT businesses. Why not start with a joint venture in game platforms and music sites?"
"Of course, that sounds great! I've even used the music site built by Taewoo Electronics. With a little adjustment for the Chinese market, it seems ready to launch immediately!"
Ma Huateng's voice grew excited.
This must have been like rain after a drought for him.
He would be able to enter the Chinese market without spending a single cent on development, as he would share the already completed music site and game platform.
"Our legal team will arrive in China within this week. We will transfer the $40 million as soon as the contract is signed."
"I'm really glad I came today. I never thought we could sign a contract on such favorable terms. It's all thanks to the elder."
"As you know, part of Tencent's share of the profits from the joint venture must go to the elder."
"Don't worry about that. I will take care of things so the elder stays pleased."
For me, this was a completely favorable deal.
Tencent would bear the costs of the money given to the Shanghai faction.
And I would have exclusive rights to Korean game licenses, so any game company wanting to enter China had to use this game platform.
Honestly, I didn't want to resort to such methods, but
Taewoo Semiconductor was consuming far more money than expected, so I had no choice.
After finishing the good negotiation, I returned to Korea.
I immediately called the representatives of several game companies that had signed distribution contracts with the game platform to the company.
"I wanted to deliver good news as soon as possible, so despite the inconvenience, I gathered you all here."
"What news is that?"
Lim Jin-tae, president of MC Soft, spoke confidently.
He was full of confidence because his MMORPG game Linzi had been a huge success.
"The game platform's entry into China has been confirmed. All Korean games distributed through the game platform will receive their licenses by the end of this month!"
"So, we can enter China now?"
"That's right. I just came back after sealing the deal personally."
"But there's a mountain of work to do starting with language changes to enter China."
"That can be done slowly. Just launch the games in the Chinese market as they become ready."
The game company representatives exchanged glances.
Their eyes were filled with a sense of caution.
Since they had fiercely competed with each other in the Korean market, it was only natural they kept an eye on one another.
"China's population is more than 20 times that of Korea. So there will be plenty of pie to share. And Taewoo Electronics will actively support the Chinese expansion. We will assist with everything from language localization to business models."
"Our MC Soft will trust only Taewoo Group."
Lim Jin-tae spoke firmly.
The other game company representatives quickly agreed.
No one voiced opposition.
That was understandable, considering the amount of financial support Taewoo Group had provided to game companies over time.
"And I have one more request."
"Anything you ask, I will listen. Just say the word."
"Are you aware of the new phone coming from Apple?"
"I know it was announced at CES. I've even heard it's closer to a small laptop than a phone."
Being from the game industry, everyone knew about the iPhone.
Some had even seen it at CES in person.
"We want you to develop games exclusively for the iPhone."
"You mean phone-only games? Phone games are usually made by small companies."
Phone games had low profitability.
But with the advent of the iPhone, profitability was expected to increase dramatically, so game development for the iPhone needed to start as soon as possible.
"Not phone games, but iPhone games. As someone mentioned, the iPhone has performance close to a small laptop. It has the specs to run low-spec PC games."
"While existing games can be converted to low specs, I don't understand why we should do that."
Their responses were quite different from those about entering China.
Perhaps out of pride as PC game companies, they weren't eager to make iPhone games.
But what use is pride when money is at stake?
And while mobile games were currently looked down upon, in just ten years, every game company would be jumping into mobile game development.
TL/n -
1998 – Tencent was founded in Shenzhen by Ma Huateng (Pony Ma) and Zhang Zhidong (Tony Zhang), along with three other co-founders.
1999 – Launched OICQ (Open ICQ), an instant messaging service inspired by ICQ. Later renamed QQ after a trademark dispute. QQ quickly became China's most popular chat platform.
2001–2003 – Monetized QQ via value-added services like virtual items, avatars, and premium memberships. This laid the groundwork for Tencent's profitable "freemium" model.
Expansion into Games & IPO (2003–2010)
2003 – Entered online gaming, launching QQ Game and later popular titles like Dungeon Fighter Online (licensed from Korea).
2004 – Tencent listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX), raising about $200 million.
2005–2007 – Expanded into portal websites (QQ.com), email, search, and early social networks.
2008 – Launched Qzone, a social networking platform, and Tencent became China's largest Internet company by revenue.
2009 – Introduced the QQ Coin virtual currency, sparking debates with regulators over its resemblance to money.
WeChat Era & Global Recognition (2011–2015)
2011 – Tencent launched WeChat (Weixin in Chinese), a mobile messaging app. It later evolved into China's "super app," integrating messaging, payments, shopping, ride-hailing, and more.
2013 – Tencent invested in JD.com, China's second-largest e-commerce platform, to counter Alibaba.
2014 – Tencent acquired a major stake in Riot Games, developer of League of Legends, solidifying its gaming dominance.
2015 – WeChat surpassed 600 million active users, becoming central to China's digital ecosystem.
Tech & Investment Giant (2016–2020)
Tencent became a venture capital powerhouse, investing in hundreds of startups globally.
Key holdings include stakes in Tesla, Spotify, Snap, Epic Games (Fortnite), Ubisoft, Meituan, and Pinduoduo.
2017 – Tencent's market value briefly exceeded $500 billion, making it Asia's most valuable company.
2018–2019 – Faced Chinese government crackdowns on gaming approvals and screen time, slowing growth.
Expanded aggressively into cloud computing, AI, fintech, and digital content.
Recent Years (2020–Present)
2020 – Benefited from COVID-19 lockdowns, with surging gaming and digital payment use.
2021 – Chinese regulators launched a tech crackdown targeting monopolistic behavior, online gaming for minors, and fintech. Tencent was forced to limit gaming hours for under-18s and restructure some services.
2022–2023 – Continued to face regulatory pressure but maintained global gaming dominance via Riot Games, Supercell, and Epic Games stakes.
2024–2025 – Tencent remains one of the world's largest tech conglomerates, with core businesses in gaming, social media (WeChat/QQ), fintech (WeChat Pay), cloud, and entertainment.
Today
Headquarters: Shenzhen, China
Employees: Over 100,000
Market Cap: Around $400–450 billion (2025)
Nicknamed "China's Facebook + PayPal + Netflix + Steam" because of its vast ecosystem.