Chapter 71: Just One Bite!
Chapter 71: Just One Bite!
Biolife passes phase one of clinical trials.
The news of a vaccine to overcome COVID-19 was a ray of hope for the entire world.
“Biolife?”
“But it’s a Korean company?”
The Wall Street Journal's exclusive story spread across the globe.
Korean broadcasting stations and newspaper companies were understandably flustered.
“Is the article from the Wall Street Journal confirmed?”
“The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services hasn't denied it.”
“How could a Korean pharmaceutical company develop a COVID vaccine?”
They said vaccine development would take at least eight years.
Even with technological advancements shortening the timeline, for a Korean company to achieve it this quickly was astonishing.
“It’s a company Kim Shin invested in.”
“Kim Shin?”
Media outlets live and die by advertising.
In the age of YouTube, broadcasting stations were desperate to secure ads just to avoid going into the red.
Newspaper companies, in particular, would print unsold copies just to maintain their ad rates, later selling the excess paper by the kilogram to Southeast Asia.
An article about Kim Shin would boost newspaper sales by over 10%.
“A company invested in by the richest man in South Korea?”
“This has to be on the front page. Get on it, now!”
“Go, go, go!”
From the crack of dawn, reporters rushed to the Biolife headquarters in Gwangmyeong.
* * *
At Mirae Motors, they had been operating under an emergency management system since the COVID-19 outbreak.
An auto company turns a profit when its factory operation rate exceeds 80%.
They were in the middle of an early morning management meeting, establishing contingency plans for the worst-case scenarios.
“Chairman. There's a report from the American media that Biolife has developed a COVID vaccine and is expected to pass phase one clinical trials.”
“Is that so?”
Jin Myeong-il, who received the report at the head office, thought it was good news.
A quickly developed vaccine, thanks to advancements in medical technology, would certainly help business operations.
“But what kind of company is Biolife? I've heard Isung Group and DK are investing in biotech.”
Mirae Motors Group.
It covered various sectors from construction to finance, shipping, and steel, but since most of its businesses were auto-related, he wasn't familiar with other fields.
His chief of staff answered Jin Myeong-il's question cautiously.
“It's not an affiliate of another conglomerate, but an independent research company.”
“I see. If they really create a COVID vaccine, they'll hit the jackpot. Even just passing phase one would cause their stock to skyrocket dozens of times over.”
The stock market is sensitive to rumors.
And the smaller the company, the higher the stock price jumps when it strikes gold, doesn't it?
“Biolife is a company owned by Kim Shin.”
“Is that so?”
From the chief of staff's perspective, he had to be cautious for various reasons.
Jin Myeong-il was the fourth richest person in South Korea.
Although a chairman's power can't be measured by wealth alone, he could still feel a sense of rivalry toward the richest man in the country.
Nevertheless, the chief of staff had to make his report.
“And currently, Mirae Construction is building Biolife's dormitory.”
“That happened?”
A dormitory building wasn't the kind of project that would typically be reported to the group chairman.
He had assumed the report was made simply because there was a minor connection between Mirae Group and Biolife.
“Managing Director Jin Yoo-kyung gave the order.”
“She did?”
“Yes. I understand she asked President Jin Tae-seop of Mirae Construction to adjust the schedules of other apartment projects to start construction the very next day.”
Jin Yoo-kyung was a smart but lonely child.
Her management skills surpassed her older brothers', making her a child with a promising future.
*Is it because of that fellow, Kim Shin?*
As a father raising a daughter, any man she brought home would inevitably seem lacking.
Especially since he was the chairman of Mirae Motors.
And yet, if it was Kim Shin as a potential son-in-law...
*Hmm. Yoo-kyung. She certainly has a good eye for men, doesn't she?*
* * *
Producer Lee Hak-jae was jolted awake by his loudly ringing phone.
“Hey, you bastard! Are you going to answer the phone or not?”
“Huh?”
Producer Seong Ho-jin.
He had worked under him since his days as a floor director, and it was Seong Ho-jin's influence that brought him to Dream Art Rainbow.
The salary and working conditions were good, but he was more drawn to the proposal of freely creating great programs.
*Why is he cursing? He wasn't such an ass back when we worked at the broadcasting station.*
Hadn't he been a serious and respected senior?
But after filming for YouTube in America, that senior had become corrupted...
“Didn't you see the news?”
“What news?”
“Check your Katalk first!”
As he quickly opened Katalk to see what was going on, he heard Producer Seong Ho-jin's furious voice.
“You need to be sharp today. If you don't want to be cursed out for the rest of your life.”
Looking at Katalk, he quickly understood the situation.
- Producer Seong Ho-jin: It's an emergency. The Wall Street Journal reported that Biolife passed phase one clinical trials.
- Producer Seong Ho-jin: The CEO seemed to know, but he didn't tell us.
- Producer Seong Ho-jin: Hey. It's been over 10 seconds. You haven't checked it?
- Producer Seong Ho-jin: Are you sleeping? You bastard!
Producer Lee Hak-jae's mind snapped to attention.
“I understand the situation 100%.”
Not just Korea, but the entire world was in a state of emergency because of COVID-19.
The COVID vaccine made by Biolife.
The producers at Dream Art Rainbow weren't from the news department; they came from entertainment or drama.
He didn't know the details, but the vaccine they had judged to have a very high probability of failure had passed phase one.
“Don't worry. I was editing footage until dawn and only went to sleep an hour ago.”
Producer Lee Hak-jae had done an in-depth report on Biolife.
So he knew they were incredibly skilled and had received massive research funding from Kim Shin.
Producer Lee Hak-jae's confident words slightly calmed Seong Ho-jin's excitement.
“Right now, the Korean media is only running short briefs. Even the Wall Street Journal doesn't have many details. This is when we need to seize the momentum.”
“Of course.”
When an event occurs, the initial news and reports are crucial.
Because once public opinion is formed, it's incredibly difficult to change.
“The interviews with Biolife's researchers and the company footage. The videos about COVID. I'll upload them all to the official YouTube channel.”
“How many are there?”
“Three parts.”
They were practically documentaries, but he figured everyone would find them extremely interesting right now.
Reporters from other stations and newspapers would end up writing their articles based on these YouTube videos.
* * *
Phase one clinical trials are usually conducted on several hundred young, healthy individuals.
For a vaccine to be released to the public, it must pass through phase three.
*It's not uncommon for side effects to appear in phases two and three.*
I trust Biolife, but even giant multinational pharmaceutical companies often fail in their ambitious new drug developments.
That's why I didn't put too much stock in it.
- Ellie: Biolife! Isn't that the company you invested in in Korea?
- Kim Shin: That's right.
It seemed Ellie had contacted me after seeing the Wall Street Journal article.
- Ellie: I'm truly impressed.
- Kim Shin: By what?
- Ellie: Your talent for investing. Your instincts. Things like that.
- Ellie: Your stock price has soared since you invested the $12 billion.
- Ellie: A lot of people at my company talk about you. Even people from other companies I meet for work.
It seemed my reputation was steadily spreading on Wall Street.
I considered the $12 billion a reasonable investment in many ways.
The $500 million I put into call options might become a headache for several financial institutions.
But in reality, financial institutions hedge large-scale call options by buying the underlying stock to mitigate risk, so their losses probably won't be significant.
- Kim Shin: You're doing well, I hope?
- Ellie: Of course. The stock market has improved, so my returns have recovered a bit.
Ellie and I have a comfortable, friendly relationship, and sometimes we go days without contacting each other.
When we do chat, well over half of our conversations are about work.
- Producer Seong Ho-jin: The Biolife special is ready. The video will be uploaded in 10 minutes.
- Producer Seong Ho-jin: The footage we filmed of you before—the videos of you investing in Biolife and discussing the vaccine—will be uploaded separately.
A report from Producer Seong Ho-jin.
The videos would cause a stir on Korean YouTube, but I considered it something I just had to get used to.
And then, a call came through.
“This is Shin Won-tae, the Minister of Health and Welfare.”
“Pardon?”
“Is this Mr. Kim Shin's mobile number?”
“Yes, this is he.”
Perhaps because of the news that it passed phase one trials, the South Korean Minister of Health and Welfare was calling me directly.
“How did you get my number?”
“Would a minister of the Republic of Korea not know something like that? Haha. Congratulations on developing the COVID vaccine.”
“It's only phase one. As you know, the probability of failure is still quite high.”
Having worked at a pharmaceutical company, I knew that the Minister of Health and Welfare is usually an expert in a relevant field, chosen for their understanding of the work.
A doctor, pharmacist, or nurse. Rarely, someone from within the ministry itself is selected.
Therefore, I assumed he would be well aware of the difficulty of vaccine development.
“Even if it fails, there's meaning in the attempt itself, wouldn't you say? Had you applied for clinical trials in Korea, the government would have provided various conveniences. It's a shame you're conducting them in the U.S.”
“We intended to conduct the trials in Korea, but I understand the conditions were quite strict.”
It sounded like he was trying to blame me, so I corrected him immediately.
When I met the governor in the U.S., the atmosphere was friendly and pleasant.
There was no room for me to meddle in American politics, and the governor didn't expect much from me.
Even if I hadn't donated to the children's charity fund, I would have just been seen as a stingy businessman, and that would have been the end of it.
Still, I wanted to say my piece to the Korean minister.
When I watch the news, I can't understand why business leaders kowtow to the government and politicians.
Having built up some negative feelings over time, I had no desire to bow my head first.
“Haha. The conditions were strict, you say. But most companies manage to meet them. And Biolife didn't even accept the government grants for COVID vaccine development.”
“I didn't want to bother with applying for documents and going through verification just to receive a grant. Besides, the amount wasn't even that much.”
For most companies, government grants were often just free money.
They weren't actually very helpful for developing a vaccine.
DK Bioscience.
Last month, this company, with a market capitalization of 9 trillion won, was apparently entrusted with a national project for COVID vaccine R&D.
And the research funding provided by the government was a mere 100 million won.
*They're just trying to create the pretense of having invested in vaccine development. They probably don't actually expect it to succeed.*
What's the point of giving 100 million won for a project that requires tens or hundreds of billions?
It led to the reasonable suspicion that even if a vaccine were developed with that money, the political sphere would just try to take credit for supporting it.
“Well, for someone with a lot of money, the government grant might seem small. From now on, the government intends to provide active support.”
“How so?”
“From development grants to streamlining clinical trials to a level similar to the U.S., and tax deductions for research. I'll immediately implement everything within my authority as minister.”
Receiving support from the Korean government would undoubtedly help vaccine development in many ways.
I was thinking I would gladly accept the support, big or small, if it was born of goodwill.