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CH121 | GSI
🕑 Added 2025-02-11 03:30:00 +0000 UTCIn the executive director’s office, Seok-won was seated on the sofa alongside Choi Ho-geun, the leader of Team 4.
Dressed in a black suit with neatly combed hair, Seok-won meticulously reviewed the file in his hands before handing it back to Choi Ho-geun, who was seated to his right.
"Team 4 has performed well again this month."
"We’re still a long way from matching the returns you achieved when you were leading the division, sir."
At the flattery, Seok-won smirked and picked up the teacup in front of him.
By the time he finished reviewing the report, the coffee had cooled just enough to drink comfortably.
Taking a sip and setting the cup down, Seok-won leaned back against the plush sofa and spoke.
"Both Ogwang Industries and Cheonho Steel have risen quite a bit this month, haven’t they?"
"More than just ‘a bit.’ Ogwang Industries has surpassed 600,000 won per share, and Cheonho Steel has climbed past 300,000 won. At this point, it’s almost frightening to see how high they’ll go."
Considering Seok-won’s average purchase price, Ogwang Industries had quadrupled, and Cheonho Steel had skyrocketed tenfold—it was no wonder Choi Ho-geun sounded overwhelmed.
"The rally is so strong that even the pessimists, who once predicted an imminent crash, have changed their stance. Now, they’re scrambling to buy Ogwang and Cheonho shares before it’s too late."
"Is that so?"
Seok-won’s eyes gleamed with interest as he listened.
"The surge is making me uneasy, but when I see people suddenly finding themselves sitting on a fortune overnight, I can’t deny that the greed kicks in—even for me."
Seok-won stroked his chin thoughtfully for a moment before turning to Choi Ho-geun.
"If even the skeptics are jumping on board, it’s probably time for us to start cashing out."
"Excuse me?"
Caught off guard, Choi Ho-geun’s eyes widened in shock.
"When the pessimists disappear, and everyone is scrambling to buy—even if it means catching the last train—that’s usually a sign that the peak is near."
"That may be true, but judging by market sentiment, don’t you think there’s still room for more growth?"
Unlike the hesitant Choi Ho-geun, Seok-won remained composed.
"Do you really believe that?"
Seok-won laced his fingers together and asked the question calmly.
Leaning forward, Choi Ho-geun responded,
"The prices are undeniably high, but retail investors are still buying aggressively. I don’t see any signs of the trend reversing just yet."
Seeing that Seok-won remained silent, Choi Ho-geun continued.
"On top of that, the government is actively supporting the stock market. Given that, I think there’s a strong chance the bull market will continue for the foreseeable future."
"You’re not wrong."
As Choi Ho-geun pointed out, the balance of deposits in securities accounts—a key indicator of market optimism—was steadily increasing, and the government wasn’t even trying to hide its market-boosting efforts.
'Next year, they’ll even double the foreign ownership limit from 10% to 20% to attract more foreign investment.'
This move would later trigger significant market turmoil, but that was a problem for another day. Right now, it wasn’t important.
With a serious expression, Seok-won looked directly at Choi Ho-geun.
"You’re right. There won’t be a market crash or downturn—at least not this year."
At first, Choi Ho-geun seemed relieved, thinking Seok-won had come around to his perspective. But the next words that followed made his brows knit in confusion.
"But just because the index isn’t falling doesn’t mean every individual stock will continue to rise."
"……?"
"What was the reason Ogwang Industries and Cheonho Steel skyrocketed in the first place?"
"Well, their stock prices were low compared to their intrinsic value, making them attractive low-PER stocks. And in the case of Cheonho Steel, its stock surged due to the value of its real estate holdings."
"Exactly. But can we still call them low-PER stocks now?"
"……!"
"When foreign investment first began, Ogwang Industries had a PER of barely 2, making it clearly undervalued. But that’s no longer the case."
Understanding the implication, Choi Ho-geun’s expression hardened.
"Now, they’re actually trading at a valuation far above their fundamental worth. The same goes for Cheonho Steel."
"……."
"The stock price has long since surpassed the value of the real estate Cheonho Steel owns. If this isn’t overheating, what is?"
Faced with such a logical argument, Choi Ho-geun realized he had no grounds for rebuttal and admitted his mistake.
"It’s obvious we’re in an overshooting phase, yet I failed to recognize it… I must have been so focused on maximizing returns that I lost sight of the bigger picture."
"A retail investor might get caught up in the excitement of rising prices, but as a professional, you can’t afford to. The more heated the market gets, the more you need to stay level-headed and assess it objectively."
Receiving Seok-won’s stern admonition, Choi Ho-geun bowed his head in apology.
"I have no excuse."
Missing such a crucial signal was a serious oversight—especially in the stock market, where mistakes directly translate to financial losses. There was no room for justification.
Seeing that Choi had fully grasped the lesson, Seok-won didn’t reprimand him further. Instead, he gave a simple directive.
"From now on, try to take a broader perspective when analyzing the market."
"Yes. I’ll make sure this never happens again."
Noting how readily Choi accepted his mistake and reflected on it, Seok-won gave a small, approving nod.
"The foreign investors are well aware of everything I just pointed out. Before long, they’ll start selling to lock in their profits."
"Unlike domestic investors, foreign institutions base their trades strictly on data and numbers. So that’s highly likely."
In fact, they might have already made the decision to sell and were just waiting for the right moment.
"If they dump their shares all at once, other investors—especially those who have been hesitating—will likely follow suit, triggering a sharp decline."
The stock prices had climbed so high that while many expected further gains, there was an underlying sense of unease.
On top of that, Seok-won held a significant number of shares. If he dumped them too quickly, it could send ripples of panic through the market—like a stone hitting thin ice.
"So let’s start by gradually unloading our Cheonho Steel holdings, since its price is already stretched to the limit."
"How long should we take to sell off the entire position?"
Knowing that both foreign investors and market manipulators would push the stock to a record high of 316,000 won at the start of the following month, Seok-won didn’t hesitate in his response.
"Sell everything by the end of this month."
"Understood. And what about Ogwang Industries?"
"Let’s close our positions there as well."
"Got it. I’ll proceed as instructed."
Hearing Choi Ho-geun’s crisp reply, Seok-won said
"Since the team has made such high returns, you can expect a nice bonus for you and the entire team, including Team Leader Choi."
"Wait, you're giving us a bonus even though you're personally managing the fund?"
Seok-won casually responded to Choi Ho-geun, who looked genuinely surprised.
"This isn't the first time you're getting a bonus, so why are you so surprised?"
"But back then, we were in the same team, and now it's different. It feels a bit awkward to accept this."
Choi Ho-geun scratched the back of his head sheepishly.
"Even though you've moved to another position, as I just directed, 4th team is still executing trades under my orders. So I think you have some share in the success."
Honestly, no one would say anything if Seok-won simply ignored it. But Choi Ho-geun was secretly touched by Seok-won’s thoughtfulness in making sure to acknowledge the team's contributions.
With a wide grin, Choi Ho-geun responded brightly.
"The team will be really happy when they hear about this!"
"Is it just the team? Aren't you happy, Team Leader Choi?"
"Haha! Of course, I'm happy. My eldest just started elementary school, and there are so many expenses with everything that needs to be taken care of. Thanks to you, I can hold my head high in front of my wife."
Since the name was changed to "elementary school" in 1996, it was still technically a "national school."
"Your eldest is a girl, right?"
"Yes, that's right."
"You’ll need to earn a lot of money if you’re planning to send both of them to college."
"Exactly. When they get older, we'll need to move to a bigger house. Honestly, it's worrying me a lot."
"How big is your current place?"
Choi Ho-geun, a bit shy, answered hesitantly.
"It’s a 24-pyeong public housing apartment."
"With two kids, it must be a bit cramped."
"Yeah, it’s fine for now since they’re still young, but my wife keeps pushing me to move, so... ahem."
Choi Ho-geun cleared his throat awkwardly and quickly stood up, preparing to leave.
"I'm sorry for rambling on when you're so busy. I’ll take my leave now."
"Alright."
Just as Choi Ho-geun left the office, the phone on the desk, which had been waiting, rang.
Seok-won stood up from the sofa and walked to the desk to pick up the phone.
"Hello?"
[Boss, this is Landon.]
At that moment, his secretary, Na Seong-mi, knocked and entered quietly, clearing the two empty tea cups from the table as she tidied up.
Seok-won watched her bow slightly as she left before sitting back down in his chair, still holding the phone to his ear.
"It must be late in New York. What’s going on?"
[It looks like something’s finally happened with the matter we were waiting on in Singapore!]
A thought flashed through Seok-won’s mind, and his eyes gleamed with recognition.
"Are you talking about Brad Cooper?"
[Yes. He hasn’t been showing up on the trading floor since yesterday and has disappeared.]
[It seems that after confirming the significant losses, he ran away once the losses became too large to handle.]
Recalling the historical event when a person irresponsibly abandoned everything as things escalated and fled with his wife to the resort in Kota Kinabalu, only to be arrested later, Seok-won asked,
“How’s the situation with Bearings Bank?”
[The audit team urgently flew in from London, and the Singapore office has been turned upside down. Since SIMEX has banned all trades involving Bearings Bank and even blocked employee access, it seems that the bomb left by Brad Cooper may be much bigger than expected.]
Landon lowered his voice and spoke seriously, even though no one was around to overhear the conversation.
[There’s a rumor going around that the hidden investment losses have exceeded $600 million.]
If Seok-won's memory served him right, the amount Brad Cooper lost was $827 million.
However, since Seok-won’s involvement had further shaken the Nikkei index and the Japanese yen, it’s possible that more money was lost than initially thought.
“If that’s true, Bearings Bank has lost more money than its assets are worth.”
[As soon as the rumors about the problem in Singapore spread, everyone rushed to sell off the bonds issued by Bearings Bank, causing the prices to drop to junk bond levels.]
“If the bank could collapse at any moment, if I were holding its bonds, I would have sold them off too.”
[Of course. I would’ve done the same.]
Landon’s voice, clearly upbeat, then lowered as he chuckled.
[It’s unfortunate for Bearings Bank to suffer because of one scam artist, but thanks to that, we’ve made a fortune from our shorts.]
Seok-won, holding the phone, couldn’t help but smile broadly.
