While I was away on a business trip to the U.S., much had changed in Korea.
Taewoo Group continued its steady growth without any major disruptions, but the broader situation in Korea was different.
"Vice Chairman, the conservative bloc has won the presidential election."
"That was expected, given the results of the last local elections. Everyone predicted the conservative primaries would be more intense than the general election itself."
A new administration had been born—emerging alongside the subprime mortgage crisis.
"He won by a landslide under the slogan of being the 'Economy President.'"
"He's from the Hyundai Group, isn't he? Chairman Jang Young-joo and even his son couldn't accomplish it, but now a former Hyundai Group executive has pulled it off."
The new president's background was quite unusual.
Whereas most past presidents had come from political circles, it wouldn't be wrong to say this one hailed from the business world.
Of course, he had served as the Minister of Construction, so he wasn't new to politics—but his origins in the Hyundai Group remained a defining trait.
"Hyundai Group is quietly celebrating, and other major conglomerates seem pleased too. Given his background, everyone expects a business-friendly policy approach."
"Not much in it for us, I suppose."
"Since we remained neutral throughout the election, the new administration hasn't really reached out to us. As a result, we may be pushed down the priority list for government contracts."
In construction, national projects were particularly important.
One of the president's major campaign pledges was the Four Rivers Project, which promised massive infrastructure works.
"Taewoo Construction is probably disappointed, then."
"On the contrary, they're relieved. Thanks to your securing Apple's new headquarters project, they have more than enough work. With so many projects underway, they actually welcome being left out of national projects for now."
National projects were, by nature, government-led.
If the government openly favored large corporations, it would surely face public backlash.
That's why national projects typically focused on small and local businesses, and large construction firms usually couldn't expect much profit from them.
"The scale of the Apple headquarters is considerable. And as you know, the folks at Apple are extremely particular. The construction must proceed flawlessly."
"The Taewoo Construction executive team has already flown to the U.S., and the company president will personally oversee the project."
"That's reassuring. Aside from the construction division, we don't really have any affiliates that need to be wary of the government, do we?"
"It would be a lie to say we're completely unaffected, but Taewoo Group has grown enough that we no longer need government support. So, there's no major issue."
The domestic market had certainly taken a hit.
However, most of Taewoo Group's affiliates were focused more on overseas markets than on domestic ones.
Even for divisions with a heavier domestic focus—like refining, automotive, and electronics— their foundations were already so solid that no amount of political interference could bring them down.
"As Taewoo Group continues to grow, political attacks will decrease. Even now, the level of pressure is far lower than in the past."
"That's true. Compared to the military regimes of the past, the current climate is practically paradise."
"Any other updates?"
"There was a call from the Ministry of Finance. They requested a meeting with you, together with the new chairman of Korea Development Bank."
"The KDB chairman? That's unexpected. I don't recall having any particular ties with him. Why meet the two of them together?"
A one-on-one meeting with the Ministry of Finance made sense.
After all, I had just acquired AIG, the largest insurance company in the U.S., so there were plenty of matters to coordinate.
But what would involve the chairman of Korea Development Bank?
"The new administration is looking to privatize Korea Development Bank, and the newly appointed chairman, Yoo Sung-min, has a background on Wall Street."
"Wall Street? Which bank was he with?"
"He has experience at both CitiGroup and Lehman Brothers. In fact, he once served as the head of Lehman Brothers' Seoul branch."
Ah, now it all made sense.
The mention of Lehman Brothers triggered a memory—the attempted acquisition of Lehman
Brothers by Korea Development Bank.
It had almost become a major scandal in KDB's history, and now, it looked like it was about to happen all over again in this lifetime.
"Set up the meeting. I'm very curious what they want to discuss."
"The Ministry of Finance wanted to meet as soon as possible. Would you be open to dinner with them this evening?"
"Make a reservation at that Korean fine-dining restaurant I frequent. After so long in the U.S., I'm craving Korean food."
It had been a while since I visited the traditional Korean restaurant run by Captain Kang.
He was waiting at the entrance, eyes glistening with emotion.
"Sir! Have you been well? I truly apologize for not being able to accompany you to the U.S."
"How could I take a man running several companies with me overseas? Thanks to your team's excellent security work, I returned to Korea without a hitch. How's business?"
"We've hit number one in market share for taxis, rentals, and chauffeur services. Especially CocoaTaxi—it's now firmly established, and many call-taxi companies have disappeared."
Maybe it was just because it had been a while, but Kang had a more dignified air about him now.
The military stiffness was almost gone, and he now looked every bit the seasoned CEO.
"Glad to hear everything's going well. I'll come visit your office soon. Have our guests arrived?"
"The Vice Minister of Finance is here already. Chairman Yoo from Korea Development Bank is expected shortly. I'll escort you to the annex."
Kang's restaurant had a quiet and calm atmosphere overall.
But the annex was especially secluded and silent—perfect for sensitive conversations.
Knock knock.
Kang gently knocked and slid open the door.
Inside, the Vice Minister of Finance welcomed me with a warm smile.
"Vice Chairman Kim Min-jae! I'm Joo Young-gon, recently appointed as Vice Minister of Finance. It's an honor to finally meet you."
"The honor is mine. I'm sorry I couldn't introduce myself sooner—my U.S. trip ended up being longer than expected."
"You've been working tirelessly for Korea's economic development. It's completely understandable."
We exchanged a few more pleasantries with genuine warmth.
Soon, Chairman Yoo Sung-min of Korea Development Bank arrived.
We stood again to exchange greetings, repeating the formalities.
Just the introductions and small talk took over ten minutes.
Then, after enjoying a light meal to curb our hunger, another hour had already passed.
Finally, we were ready to begin the real conversation.
"We were stunned by your acquisition of AIG. Not just at the Ministry of Finance—there was shock at the Blue House as well. For the largest U.S. insurance company to come under Korean ownership... What greater symbol of national pride could there be?"
"Thank you for saying that. Acquiring the company was difficult enough—but now comes the real challenge. I'll do my best to manage it without causing any harm to the Korean economy."
"We have no doubt Taewoo Group will handle it well. That's actually why we asked for this meeting—we're hoping to receive some advice and perhaps a bit of help."
I perked up.
My heart even started to pound, wondering if they were really about to say what I thought they would.
"KDB is considering acquiring Lehman Brothers. The offer came from the U.S. side first, and both the Ministry of Finance and KDB see this as a great opportunity. Isn't that right, Chairman Yoo?"
"We believe it's a perfect opportunity for KDB to transform into a fully privatized bank. It could become one of the largest banks in the world overnight and step into the global financial market."
There it was.
They'd actually said it—KDB was planning to acquire Lehman Brothers.
It wasn't impossible—after all, Taewoo Securities had acquired AIG—but unlike us, KDB didn't have a solid parent company to back it.
Sure, the Korean government could technically act as the parent entity…
But unlike us, the government hadn't secured massive insurance policies to buffer the risk. If they wanted to acquire Lehman Brothers, they'd have to use national reserves—pure taxpayer money.
"The acquisition itself might not be too difficult, but isn't the price tag the real problem? Taking over Lehman means inheriting its massive debt as well. Do you think that's manageable?"
"KDB is no small institution. And the U.S. Federal Reserve has given us firm assurances—they'll help us acquire Lehman at a very low price."
Wall Street's hyenas.
Broadly speaking, even the Fed could be considered one of Wall Street's predators.
It seemed their plan was to dump the sinking ship that was Lehman Brothers onto Korea's KDB, shifting the debt burden onto the Korean government.
"If the acquisition succeeds and the operation stabilizes, then yes—KDB could transform into a financial giant, just as you said. But if that stabilization fails, the fallout will be catastrophic."
"We're fully aware of the risks. That's why we're not taking on the entire Lehman Brothers— only the healthy assets. The U.S. government will deal with the toxic ones."
Toxic and healthy assets?
What difference did that make now?
Even if they sold off unprofitable divisions, it wouldn't make much of a dent in Lehman's debt.
Lehman's total debt stood at a minimum of $600 billion.
That was over 700 trillion won—an amount far beyond KDB's ability to handle alone, and possibly too large even for the Korean government to support.
"I wouldn't recommend it, but if you do move forward and need help, I'm willing to assist however I can."
"We understand your concerns. We've already designed a plan to spread the risk as much as possible, so please rest assured."
"Since I don't know the full details of the Ministry's and KDB's strategy, there's only so much I can say. What kind of help would you like from me?"
I took a step back.
In truth, even before my regression, KDB had once considered acquiring Lehman Brothers—only to back out in the end.
So if they did go through with it this time, even I wasn't entirely sure what would happen.
"Vice Chairman Kim, I understand you signed an insurance contract with Lehman Brothers.
Would it be possible for KDB to take over that policy?"
"The transfer itself is no issue. The real question is the price, isn't it? Of course, I'm not expecting the full payout listed on the policy. Still, the certificate holds considerable value."
It was an insurance certificate from a company that was on the brink of collapse.
There was no reason not to sell it—and in fact, I welcomed the offer.
"We'd like to offer 10% of the insured amount."
"Hmm… that's a little low. Consider how much we've already paid in premiums."
"We're prepared to pay with KDB's own assets—in real estate, and even premium loans we currently hold."
Premium corporate loans.
That meant KDB had extended credit or investment to businesses.
And "premium" meant they were either large corporations or mid-sized firms with very low debt ratios.
If I could acquire loans held by companies with credit ratings of AA or higher, I could collect substantial interest payments every month.
"Roughly how much in loans are we talking about?"
"To start with, we're thinking of five trillion won in loans to AA-rated companies. On top of that, we can add up to 20 trillion in AA– loans."
A chance to earn 25 trillion won.
All in exchange for an insurance policy that was practically worthless now.
And that wasn't all—they were offering real estate on top of it.
There was absolutely no reason to say no.