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CH286 | GSI
🕑 Added 2025-04-06 03:52:09 +0000 UTCRodney, the CIO of Quantum Fund, sat at his desk, scanning the multiple monitors in front of him. Something caught his eye, and his brow twitched.
Reaching out, he pressed the intercom switch, summoning his secretary, Rose.
"Rose, call Ian and tell him to come to my office immediately."
[Yes, sir.]
Before long, there was a knock at the door. Rodney looked up and responded.
"Come in."
Ian stepped inside, approached, and spoke.
"You called for me?"
Leaning back in his chair, Rodney asked,
"Copper prices are plummeting—both spot and futures. What the hell is going on?"
"I was just about to report something interesting."
"Let’s hear it."
Ian’s eyes gleamed with intrigue.
"It looks like Eldorado Fund is attacking Sumimoto Corporation."
"What?"
Rodney immediately straightened up, his expression turning serious.
"Explain in detail."
"You’re aware that Eldorado Fund has been shorting Sumimoto Corporation on the Tokyo Stock Exchange."
"Of course."
Rodney gave a small nod.
After New York and London, Tokyo was the third most important and largest financial market. It was only natural that Quantum Fund had been monitoring the massive short-selling targeting Sumimoto Corporation—one of Japan’s top five trading conglomerates.
"We found it strange that they shorted over 100 billion yen despite no clear bad news."
Then, a sudden realization struck Rodney. His eyes widened.
"Don’t tell me—Eldorado Fund is deliberately driving down copper prices to damage Sumimoto, knowing they hold a significant position?"
"As expected, you caught on immediately. That’s exactly right."
Rodney’s expression hardened slightly upon hearing the confirmation.
"Many hedge funds, including ours, have tried to take down Sumimoto Corporation before, but we failed every time. Their grip on the copper market has been too strong. Do you really think Eldorado will succeed?"
"This time, they just might."
Rodney looked puzzled.
"What do you mean?"
"Sumimoto's control over the copper market has largely relied on its collusion with Chinese firms—the biggest producers and consumers of copper."
"That’s true," Rodney replied, his expression turning sour as unpleasant memories surfaced.
"No matter how much we sold, Sumimoto and those Chinese firms would absorb everything and manipulate production levels. In the end, we had to cut our losses and walk away."
"But this time, those very same Chinese firms are siding with Eldorado, selling off their copper holdings."
Rodney’s eyes narrowed.
"Are you serious?"
Ian nodded.
"Looking back at the data, it turns out Chinese firms have been steadily selling since last month. And when Eldorado unleashed a massive sell-off in the futures market, they immediately dumped 150,000 tons of physical copper, accelerating the crash."
Rodney’s voice rose in shock.
"They sold 150,000 tons of physical copper?!"
"Yes. And the bigger issue is that they haven’t stopped. They’re offloading copper as if they’re liquidating in a hurry, fueling market panic that prices could drop even further."
Sensing that a major shake-up was underway, Rodney’s eyes gleamed with intrigue.
"How is Sumimoto responding?"
"They’re buying aggressively—both in the spot and futures markets—trying to absorb the sell-off."
Rodney scoffed.
"So, while the Chinese firms are shorting, Sumimoto is fighting alone by buying?"
Rodney furrowed his brow, and Ian nodded in response.
"Yes. Before I came up here, I confirmed that they've already bought nearly 200,000 tons of physical copper."
Rodney’s eyes glinted with intrigue as he stroked his chin and muttered,
"This is getting very interesting."
Sensing the moment, Ian stepped closer to the desk, his voice filled with urgency.
"This is our opportunity."
Rodney shot him a sideways glance, raising an eyebrow.
"You’re saying we should get in on this?"
"Exactly."
Ian replied without hesitation, his excitement barely contained.
"Analysts have been predicting a drop in copper prices since last year due to oversupply and weakening demand. Sumimoto has been propping up the market all this time, but now that even their strongest allies—Chinese firms—have turned against them, they won’t be able to hold the line much longer."
"Without China backing them, they certainly won’t be as powerful as before," Rodney mused, crossing his arms.
"I don’t know how they figured it out, but Eldorado must have noticed the cracks in the alliance and seized the moment with a bold short position."
"That makes sense," Rodney agreed.
Eldorado Fund was known for its unexpected, high-risk plays, yet time and time again, its seemingly reckless bets paid off. Rodney had learned to respect their strategic precision.
"Given the market conditions and Eldorado’s aggressive stance, they clearly believe their odds of winning are high. If we move quickly, we can ride this wave and make a substantial profit."
Ian spoke with certainty, convinced that Sumimoto’s downfall was inevitable.
Rodney leaned back in his chair, tapping his fingers against the desk as he weighed the decision.
After a brief pause, he looked up at Ian and gave his command.
"Alright. We took a hit last time—this is our chance to pay them back."
"Exactly!"
Ian grinned in satisfaction.
"Follow Eldorado’s lead. Short both futures and physical copper."
"How big of a position should we take?"
Rodney pondered for a moment before asking,
"How much has Eldorado Fund put on the line?"
"Excluding their short position in Sumimoto Corporation’s stock, it looks like they’ve taken a short position worth over $1 billion in copper futures."
At this, Rodney flashed a grin.
"Then we’ll each put in $1 billion, making it a total of $2 billion. We’re the legendary hedge fund—no way we’re letting Eldorado outmatch us."
"I couldn’t agree more."
Ian, already envisioning easy profits by jumping into the game Eldorado had set up, returned Rodney’s smile.
"I’ll place the bets right away."
"Go ahead."
Rodney nodded.
Fueled by the desire to avenge their past failure, Ian left the office brimming with determination. Left alone, Rodney leaned back in his chair, his gaze fixed on the monitors.
He stared at the copper spot price, which was teetering dangerously close to breaking below $2,600. Then, with a smirk, he murmured,
"So, he’s been up to something again. That guy never fails to keep things interesting."
* * *
Though it was still the dark hours before dawn, the lights in Seok-won’s newly acquired luxury villa were fully lit.
Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3, "Eroica" resonated throughout the space—its grand yet lyrical melody blending seamlessly with the crisp morning air.
Standing before the espresso machine in his spacious kitchen, Seok-won watched as the rich, fragrant coffee essence dripped steadily into his mug, accompanied by the low whirring of the machine.
He lifted the mug, inhaled deeply, and, satisfied with the aroma, made his way across the living room to a room on the left.
Inside, a massive U-shaped wooden desk dominated the space, holding four bulky CRT monitors connected to the latest Intel Pentium Pro computer.
Beside them, a Bloomberg terminal stood ready, streaming real-time market data.
To the left, a side table housed a printer and fax machine, allowing for seamless, immediate access to any necessary transactions or communications.
When Seok-won decided to move out of the family home, the very first thing he focused on during renovations was setting up this personal trading room.
Just as he set his steaming coffee down beside the mouse, his cell phone, resting next to it, began to ring.
"Hello?"
As soon as Seok-won answered, a noticeably excited Landon spoke up on the other end.
[Boss! Are you looking at copper prices right now?]
Seokwon tilted his head slightly in curiosity.
"No, I stepped away for a bit. Did something happen?"
Holding the phone to his ear, Seok-won turned his gaze to the monitors displaying copper spot and futures prices.
After plunging to $2,601.9, the price had momentarily stabilized as Sumimoto Corporation stepped in to defend its position. But now, copper spot and futures prices were dropping sharply once again.
[LME Copper Cathode: $2,571.9 ▼ 128.3]
"Wait… What’s going on?"
Startled, Seok-won asked, and Landon immediately provided an answer.
[Quantum Fund has started shorting copper after following our lead. Seeing that, other funds, which were hesitating before, have all jumped in as well.]
Understanding the situation instantly, a deep smile formed on Seok-won’s lips.
"Ah, so the piranhas have caught the scent of blood and are swarming in."
[Hahaha, 'piranhas'—what a perfect analogy! That’s exactly it. Unlike before, now that even the Chinese firms are selling off copper and Sumimoto Corporation is showing signs of weakness, everyone sees this as their chance to grab a piece of the action.]
Watching the flood of sell orders pouring in like a dam bursting, Seok-won remarked,
"There’s no way hedge funds—who have a nose for money sharper than anyone—would just sit back and watch."
[Exactly. At first, many were hesitant because of Sumimoto’s past resilience, but once Quantum Fund placed massive short orders on both spot and futures markets, the mood shifted completely.]
Seok-won pictured George Soros and his protégé, Rodney, in his mind.
"As expected, they’re formidable opponents."
For now, they were on the same side, making them reliable allies. But if they ever became adversaries, they would undoubtedly be a force to reckon with.
After all, it was hedge funds led by George Soros that had orchestrated the collapse of currencies across South Korea and Southeast Asia, triggering the infamous financial crisis.
If history were to repeat itself, and hedge funds like Quantum descended like a pack of hyenas to pick apart South Korea when it was on its knees during the IMF crisis, he might have no choice but to go head-to-head with them.
"I’d rather not clash with them if I can avoid it. But if a fight is inevitable, I’ll have to break them completely—so they never dare come at me again."
Seok-won’s eyes flashed with a sharp glint as he tightened his grip on his phone.
"With all these hedge funds piling on, I’d say this battle is as good as over."
[No matter how powerful Sumimoto Corporation is, there’s no way they can hold out against this kind of coordinated attack.]
Landon agreed without hesitation.
"Exactly. Once the news spreads that Sumimoto suffered massive losses in copper, their stock—propped up by share buybacks—will come crashing down again."
[That’s highly likely.]
Landon then burst into laughter.
[Hahaha! Once again, Boss, your bet was spot on!]
A faint smile crossed Seok-won’s lips.
"It’s not over yet. Stay sharp until we lock in our profits."
[Of course. No worries.]
After ending the call, Seok-won set down his phone and calmly watched as Sumimoto Corporation’s last line of defense crumbled under the relentless tsunami of sell orders.
Like a dam collapsing, the overwhelming pressure swept away everything in its path.
As he observed copper prices plummeting in a near-vertical freefall, Seok-won muttered under his breath, already anticipating the market shockwave that was about to follow.
"This might turn out to be even bigger than I expected."
With that, he lifted his mug, the rich aroma of coffee filling the air, and took a slow sip—wondering just how far copper prices would fall.
TL/n -
Yasuo Hamanaka was a senior trader at Sumitomo Corporation, one of Japan’s largest trading companies. He earned the nickname "Mr. Copper" because he controlled a significant portion of the global copper market in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
During his time at Sumitomo, Hamanaka built a dominant position in the copper market, using aggressive trading strategies and derivatives. At his peak, he reportedly controlled up to 5% of the world’s copper supply and influenced global prices. His trading was so impactful that Sumitomo was seen as a market maker in copper.
In 1996, Sumitomo shocked the world by revealing that Hamanaka had engaged in unauthorized copper trading for over a decade, causing losses of $2.6 billion—one of the biggest financial trading scandals in history.
- Hamanaka faked records and forged signatures to conceal risky trades.
- He used over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives and futures contracts to manipulate copper prices.
- He bet on copper prices rising, but when the market turned, the losses spiraled out of control.
His activities were eventually uncovered, and Sumitomo had to report the massive losses.
In 1997, Hamanaka was arrested and later sentenced to 8 years in prison for fraud and forgery.
The scandal shook global commodity markets, as Sumitomo had been a major player in copper trading.
Several international banks and financial institutions that dealt with Sumitomo faced huge losses as well.
The "Hamanaka Scandal" remains one of the most infamous cases of rogue trading, alongside incidents like the Nick Leeson-Barings Bank collapse and Jérôme Kerviel’s losses at Société Générale. It serves as a warning about the dangers of unchecked financial speculation.
