The sun in California hit differently. It wasn't the humid, oppressive heat of Seoul; it was dry, golden, and smelled of eucalyptus and money.
Kang Min-jun stood outside a nondescript low-rise building. To his left was Sequoia Capital. To his right, Andreessen Horowitz. This was the Vatican City of Venture Capital.
"I feel nauseous," Lee Seung-gun adjusted his tie. He was wearing a suit, sweating in the California sun. "Maybe we should have worn hoodies. Do they trust people in suits here?"
"They trust numbers," Min-jun said, wearing a simple button-down shirt. "And they trust vision. Take off the tie, CEO Lee. You look like a banker. You need to look like a hacker."
Hong Ye-eun stepped out of the rental car. She looked perfectly at home, wearing oversized sunglasses and carrying a Birkin bag that signaled she didn't need their money—which was the best way to get it.
"Han Kim is waiting," she said. "He’s the Managing Director of Altos Ventures. He bet on Coupang when everyone said e-commerce in Korea was a bloodbath. He likes contrarian bets."
"Let's give him one," Min-jun said.
Altos Ventures Conference Room.
Han Kim was a man who wasted no motion. He sat at the head of the table, an iPad in front of him. He didn't offer coffee. He offered silence.
"I've seen the deck," Han Kim said, scrolling through the slides. "Toss. P2P money transfer. You hacked the CMS banking system. Clever. Regulatory arbitrage."
He looked up.
"But Venmo exists. PayPal exists. Square Cash exists. Why does the world need another transfer app in a market the size of Indiana?"
"Korea isn't Indiana," Seung-gun started, his voice shaky. "We have 50 million people, but the transaction density is the highest in the world. We are a cashless society in transition."
"Low margin," Han Kim countered. "You subsidize the fees. You lose money on every transaction. Your burn rate is insane. And Daegwang Group—a Chaebol with infinite resources—is launching a competitor. Why shouldn't I just short you?"
Seung-gun froze. It was the standard "Valley of Death" question. How do you monetize a free utility?
Min-jun leaned forward. "Because we aren't a transfer app, Mr. Kim."
Han Kim shifted his gaze to the student. "And who are you? The intern?"
"I'm the lead investor of the Seed Round," Min-jun said. "Kang Min-jun of Mirue Partners."
"A college student VC," Han Kim smirked. "Only in 2015. Go on. If you aren't a transfer app, what are you?"
Min-jun stood up and walked to the whiteboard. He picked up a marker.
"In the US, banking is fragmented. You have checking accounts, credit cards, 401ks, mortgages—all in different silos. In Korea, it's even worse. The average Korean has 5.4 bank accounts and 3.2 credit cards."
Min-jun drew a circle in the center.
"Toss is the dashboard. Transfer is just the hook. It's the 'Loss Leader' to get them to open the app every day. Once we have their attention, and more importantly, their data, we pivot."
"Pivot to what?"
"To the 'Financial Super App'."
Min-jun wrote the word SUPER APP.
"We don't just move money. We sell money. We sell insurance. We sell loans. We sell investments. We become the marketplace."
"That's a nice dream," Han Kim said. "But you have no credit data. You can't underwrite loans. The Credit Bureau (KCB) won't share data with a startup."
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"We don't need KCB," Min-jun said. "We have better data."
"Better how?"
"KCB scores you based on debt. If you have a credit card and pay it off, your score goes up. But what about the 25-year-old freelancer? The student? The housewife? They have no credit card. They are 'Thin Filers'. The banks reject them."
Min-jun tapped the table.
"Toss sees their cash flow. We know they pay their rent on the 1st. We know they send 50,000 won to their mom every week. We know they have a positive cash balance. That is real creditworthiness. We are building an Alternative Credit Scoring Model (ACSM)."
Han Kim stopped scrolling. He looked at Min-jun.
"Data underwriting," Han Kim murmured. "Lending to the unbanked using cash-flow analytics."
"The spread on subprime loans in Korea is 20%," Min-jun said. "The banks reject them, so they go to loan sharks. We can offer them 10%. We undercut the sharks, beat the banks, and take the entire mid-interest market. That is a 50 Trillion Won TAM (Total Addressable Market)."
The room was silent. This wasn't a pitch for a transfer tool. It was a pitch for a digital bank.
Han Kim looked at Lee Seung-gun. "Can you build this? The scoring engine?"
"We are already building it," Seung-gun said, regaining his confidence. "We have 2 million users worth of transaction history. The model is learning every day."
Han Kim leaned back. He looked at the trio. The desperate founder, the polished heiress, and the scary kid who talked like a seasoned banker.
"Daegwang will try to kill you," Han Kim said.
"They already tried," Min-jun smiled. "They failed."
Han Kim tapped his iPad. "I like it. It's crazy. It's ambitious. And it's exactly the kind of disruption Korea needs."
He looked at Ye-eun. "Altos is in. Series A. We lead."
"Valuation?" Ye-eun asked instantly.
"Pre-money 50 Billion Won ($45M). We invest 10 Billion Won ($9M) for 16.6%."
Seung-gun gasped. 50 Billion. It was ten times their seed valuation.
"Done," Min-jun said before anyone could hesitate.
Han Kim stood up and shook Min-jun's hand. "You're dangerous, kid. If you ever get tired of Seoul, come to the Valley. We could use a shark."
"I prefer the Han River," Min-jun said. "The water is murkier."
July 20, 2015. Incheon International Airport. Arrivals Hall.
They walked out into the humid Korean air. They were exhausted, jet-lagged, but victorious. The wire transfer from Altos was scheduled for next week. 10 Billion Won. Toss had a war chest that Daegwang couldn't ignore.
Min-jun checked his phone as soon as he connected to the network.
Hanmi Science (008930): 115,000 KRW. It had doubled again while he was in the air. His position was now worth ~4.5 Billion KRW.
"Min-jun," Ye-eun said, waiting for her driver. "We did it. We actually did it."
"Phase 1 is complete," Min-jun said, checking his messages.
"What's Phase 2?"
"Phase 2 is the 'Trojan Horse'."
"I thought you said Daegwang was the Trojan Horse?"
"No," Min-jun lowered his voice. "Daegwang is the castle. We need a way inside the castle. Not as an enemy, but as a... consultant."
"You want to work with them? After everything?"
"Hyuk-jae is wounded. His retail division is crashing. His FinTech division is stalling. He is desperate for a win. And when people are desperate, they make mistakes."
Min-jun looked at the headlines on the airport TV. [Lotte Group Succession Feud Intensifies] [Samsung-Elliott Management Proxy Battle]
Chaebols were fighting internally. It was the season of succession wars. Daegwang had its own succession issue. Chairman Jin Seok-hoon was old. Hyuk-jae needed to prove he was the rightful heir against his older sister, Jin Seo-yoon.
"Jin Seo-yoon," Min-jun said the name.
"The 'Princess'?" Ye-eun asked. "She runs the Hotel and Chemical divisions. She hates Hyuk-jae."
"Exactly. The enemy of my enemy is my ATM."
Min-jun picked up his bag. "I'm going to meet her."
"You? She's untouchable. She doesn't meet students."
"She meets winners," Min-jun said. "And we just raised $9 million from Silicon Valley. We aren't students anymore, Ye-eun. We are players."
August 2015. The Setup.
Min-jun sat in his apartment. He was preparing the dossier on Jin Seo-yoon. Cold. Calculating. Competent. Unlike Hyuk-jae, she wasn't emotional. She was a machine. In his past life, she had been pushed out of the succession by Hyuk-jae's dirty tricks and sexism. She had taken her share and retired to Europe.
What if she didn't retire? Min-jun wondered. What if she fought back?
He checked his Hanmi Science shares. 130,000 KRW. He was getting close to the peak. November. The Sanofi Deal ($3.5 Billion). That would be the top.
He needed to plan the exit. And he needed to plan the entry into Daegwang Corp (The Holding Company).
If he helped Seo-yoon win the throne, he could control the Daegwang Group from the shadows. But playing Kingmaker was dangerous. If he backed the wrong horse, he would be crushed.
"High risk, high return," Min-jun whispered.
He drafted an email. To: Office of the CEO, Daegwang Hotels. Subject: Proposal regarding the acquisition of Hermes Logistics.
He wasn't going to sell Hermes. He was just dangling the bait.
[TRANSACTION LOG]
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Date: July 2015
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Entity: Viva Republica (Toss)
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Action: Series A Funding Closed.
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Investor: Altos Ventures.
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Amount: 10 Billion KRW.
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Valuation: 60 Billion KRW Post-Money.
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Mirue Partners Stake: Diluted to ~8.3%. Value: ~5 Billion KRW (10x Return on Seed).
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Personal Asset Status:
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Hanmi Science: ~4.5 Billion KRW (Paper Wealth).