Chapter 15

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Translated by Heavenly Cat

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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There’s a saying.

That the domestic market has growth limits.

“I told you over and over. We shouldn’t do the domestic market but the US market!”

“Yeah. You have to pay taxes double, in the US and Korea.”

“Yeah. The government should give tax breaks. Plus it’s corporate tax anyway.”

“Even with breaks, you still have to pay what you pay, so in that case the domestic market is better!”

“Then you stick with the domestic market forever. You’re an idiot stuck at 2,000.”

There are various reasons why the domestic market’s growth has stopped.

War threats, foreigners’ selling ratios, National Pension and various institutions’ short-term profit goals, very tight financial regulations.

And the biggest among these was still owner risk.

Korea continues companies through succession work.

This has become entrenched like a firm culture, resulting in management centered on conglomerate owners, not shareholder-friendly.

In contrast, the US implements shareholder-friendly policies, and there’s almost no culture of passing on even companies you founded to your own children.

As a result, rather than some family or specific person dominating, the perception that the company itself belongs to shareholders is strong.

Isn’t that the scary place where they casually cut even founders?

Expanding dividends, shareholder returns through share buybacks.

US institutions also practice active purchases when stock prices rise along with long-term investment.

This was the biggest factor allowing the US stock market to grow.

“Plus, the US market has no limit on how high it can go.”

“There’s no limit on how low it can go either.”

“Then just take short positions.”

“Ah, if that was so easy, I’d have made big money. What’s your team’s return rate this month?”

“That’s.”

When companies get big, various departments emerge.

Gwangwoon Securities was the same.

So even working at the same securities firm, everyone plays in different places.

Someone in the domestic market, someone overseas, someone else only bonds, someone else only options.

“We bought really well. But we got the selling timing wrong. If we’d just sold that well, we would’ve had a proper performance bonus feast.”

They say buying is technique and selling is art.

Anywhere, timing the sell is truly difficult.

“Do something about the US market. When the big brother shakes, all the younger ones shake together.”

When the US market shakes, stock markets worldwide shake.

The Korean stock market taking a hit was also ultimately because of the US market.

“Those guys suddenly say they’re tired of zero interest rates and will raise them now, what can I do? Then what about you? You just need to pick up fallen leaves well to make money, why are you in the negatives because you can’t do that one thing?”

“Hey. What we spread through option selling all went to hell because of you guys.”

“Anyone would think I made the US market fall. Didn’t you guys make money comfortably until now anyway? I really should’ve just gone to do options.”

If you pick the department that doesn’t come to work the most at securities firms, the options department would be picked first.

The department that spreads option selling has nothing particular to do.

Option selling is like selling lottery tickets, gamblers everywhere buy hoping to hit it big.

And 99% of the time, the securities firm takes the profit.

It was a structure where you just pick your nose doing nothing and eat the profits that fall.

But really occasionally that day comes.

The day you have to pour out prize money to lottery winners who broke through terrible odds.

“Are there any teams that touched wads of cash this time?”

“Just one place. Over there, the prop trade team.”

“Huh? Wasn’t that the place that got destroyed?”

“No. I heard too, that there’s a place that made historic profits this time?”

“In the domestic market, not even the US market? How much did they make?”

Then one team leader quietly whispered.

“The rumor is 50%.”

“Hey. That’s nonsense. Making 50%. Even the US market can’t make that much.”

“There’s also talk of over 50%. I heard 60%? Just one individual alone?”

“There you go spreading false rumors again. Does that make sense logically?”

“That’s why. I heard a new team is being created in the prop trading department this time?”

That was an even stranger thing.

There were quite a few traders who ran out unable to endure the pressure from the bearish market, but instead of reducing teams, they’re increasing them?

“So, who’s the new team leader?”

————————————————————————————————————————

While running the guild for several years, hyung-nim and I occasionally met just the two of us.

Each time, there’s a place we two go.

“I was going to buy you something like high-end Korean set meals.”

“Nah. I know hyung-nim’s taste well. Pork belly with soju, you like this best.”

“You brat. Always doing nice things.”

Since he’s a securities firm president, you’d think he goes to high-end Korean set meals or omakase every day, but surprisingly hyung-nim’s taste was simple.

“Ugh. I can’t do omakase. Seafood and weird vegetables. They give meat the size of a mouse tail. No, no.”

“Don’t you like meat too much?”

“My daughter always says that. Dad’s taste is like an elementary schooler’s. But living life once, I can eat only what I want to eat!”

“You’ll get a stroke, hyung-nim.”

“Tsk. Even you nagging? On this good day. Hurry and cheers.”

“Yes!”

On the beautifully sizzling pork belly, placing sweet and sour scallions, then dropping in roasted garlic too.

Wrapping it like that and putting it in one bite, then finishing with soju.

“Ahh.”

This was heaven.

“So, is that bastard Young-chul coming to the raid? Without him we have no support. We can do without dealers, but without support the hit is big.”

“Right. I’ll catch him so he can attend no matter what.”

“But I understand that guy too. The game company bastards neglect support, so he’s getting fed up.”

When we met, it was always like this.

From start to finish.

All day talking only about games.

Normally when meeting adults, what are your future dreams? What will you do to make a living?

Life lessons and experiences and such.

I only heard such things boringly.

But with hyung-nim, it was nice that we could comfortably talk only about games without any personal talk.

“Ahem. I didn’t come to talk about games today. Without realizing. At this rate time will all pass.”

But the person who came to meet me today wasn’t the guild master.

It was the president of Gwangwoon Securities.

“Jin-ho.”

The president paused in silence, drank a glass of soju, then spoke heavily.

“You have your own investment method, right?”

My investment method.

Of course I have one.

“Yes.”

Only doing it by feeling. Though that’s the only one I have.

“As I thought.”

He nodded saying he knew it would be so.

“I won’t ask how you got such absurd profits, or what your investment method is. Because even if you tell me, I won’t understand. Probably others would be the same. Maybe it’s an algorithm only you can understand in the world. Your day trading return rate doesn’t make sense at all. It’s not a level you can achieve just from being lucky.”

An algorithm only I can understand.

Who could understand if I said I invest based only on one intuition called feeling?

“I’m originally someone who values ability. Until now, school connections, regional connections, even blood relations, if I judged there was no suitable ability, I’ve never accepted them into the company. The only principle I broke was you.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Of course, you managed our guild well, and especially there must have been many annoying things the elders did, but seeing you coordinate well without complaints was big.”

If it weren’t for hyung-nim, I’d still be stuck in a small room gloomily preparing for employment.

Without even dreaming I had such talent.

“Eating pork belly with soju like this with hyung-nim? And talking about games?”

“Hehe. This is the best.”

I also liked tilting glasses and chatting with hyung-nim like this.

Maybe because of this comfortable atmosphere, I never noticed at all that this hyung-nim was the president of that big securities firm.

We hardly ever talked about personal things when we met.

“I think our company got big all thanks to that. If there was ability, I really pushed hard. And I think now is exactly that time.”

The president asked while filling the glass.

“Want to try being a team leader?”

I almost dropped the glass I was holding.

“What?”

“I said it. People with ability should be pushed hard. Honestly, pushing this much is a first even for me. But you’re the first to make that much profit through day trading in just 5 days.”

I drained the glass awkwardly.

Even though I haven’t worked at many companies or worked long, I knew it takes a long time for a new employee to become a team leader.

In other words, this was a very radical, super-fast promotion.

“Team leader means I lead one team?”

“Right. You always take raid leader position in the guild too. Think of it as the same as that.”

“Comparing it to that is a bit.”

“Hey. Do you know how hard raid leading is? In my view, that’s harder than being a team leader.”

Team leader? Me?

I naturally thought of Team Leader Park Hong-seo.

Comparing to that rough and imposing superior, I somehow looked more diminutive.

“Normally team leader level is classified as elite grade. And you seniors take about 20% profit rate. But from team leader it goes up to 30%. That’s not all? The capital you use also goes up.”

“How much does it go up?”

“50 billion.”

“!?”

That’s 10 times the amount I’m currently using.

“Of course, I’m not saying roll all that 50 billion by yourself. If you’re team leader, you have team members, right? Those team members will be senior traders. Like your team leader does, you have to divide money appropriately to those people too. Even doing that, at minimum you’ll have to handle about 30 billion.”

30 billion.

An enormous amount.

If you make just 10% there, that’s 3 billion.

If you take that as salary, 900 million!

“Plus, team leader level bonuses are higher. If the whole team performance is good, you get 10% more.”

Usually prop trading teams set daily profits at 0.1% to 1%.

Running it for a month like that produces over 10% profit.

Then my monthly salary would be a whopping 1.2 billion.

‘Our team leader also makes a ton.’

Indeed, this financial world is an amazing place for ordinary people.

“But can I be a team leader? It hasn’t been long since I joined. I don’t have even one basic certification.”

From other team leaders, no, just looking at Deputy Lee Hye-rin alone, don’t they have amazing specs?

“What do certifications matter? There’s no legal problem either. You can get 100 certifications, but in the end here you’re evaluated by return rate. And you proved yourself. Well, there might be some talk among employees, but if they’re annoyed, they should generate return rates like you.”

In the end, in this field, return rate is the spec.

“How about it? Want to try?”

“I’d be stupid not to, right?”

“It is a burdensome position. Rising in rank means there’s a lot to take responsibility for. But. It’s also true that it’s an unprecedented super-fast promotion.”

Honestly, I wasn’t confident I could open meetings from morning and give orderly instructions like Team Leader Park Hong-seo. But when did I ever have knowledge about securities firms when I entered this company?

“I don’t know if I can do well, but I’ll try.”

“Hahaha. Good. You thought well. Then shall we cheers to commemorate the promotion, Team Leader Jeong?”

Employee on the first day. Assistant manager after a few days.

And team leader.

That title was strangely thrilling.

“Yes, President.”

After commemorating with a cheers, the president waved his hand as if fed up.

“Hey. Stop work talk now. I’m tired of talking about work from morning until now even in front of good pork belly.”

He returned from president to guild master again.

“Right. We’re best at chatting with games.”

“Hehe. So, I heard you got carried in yesterday’s raid? I heard from all the guild members.”

“No. That’s. Hyung-nim. I really was wrongfully accused of wrongful accusation.”

“Oh my. Was that so?”

“It’s true! Ah. I should’ve recorded video.”

Indeed, I also felt most comfortable and liked talking about games with hyung-nim.

————————————————————————————————————————

“I’m here.”

Yesterday I drank long with hyung-nim and only talked about games all night, came home late and fell asleep, so I woke up past lunch.

“Huh. What. You came today too?”

“Of course. It’s our house.”

“Last time you didn’t come for a whole month. You broke up with your boyfriend.”

“Your intuition is disgustingly quick. Looking at you, you drank yesterday. Did you have a company dinner?”

“Is it obvious?”

“What company has dinners on weekends? It’s really a weird company.”

My sister criticized that a major company torments people even on weekends.

But should I have said it wasn’t a company dinner but a guild executive dinner?

“And there’s another reason I came today.”

“Hm?”

“You treated me last week. I felt bad eating from someone who hasn’t even gotten paid yet, so today I’m treating. Oh right. Should I buy you a suit as an employment gift? When Mom and Dad come, let’s eat out together and go to the department store.”

“Y-you don’t have to do that much.”

“It’s fine. Remember? When I first got employed, you bought me shoes with money you saved from part-time work. Are you still wearing them?”

That was already years ago.

My sister was still wearing those shoes.

Suddenly a tsunami of emotion rushes in.

“I’m fine. Don’t you need to use it? Living alone too.”

“I got my salary plus performance bonus on Friday. I make quite a bit now. Don’t underestimate me.”

My sister stood proudly, puffing up.

I felt oddly proud.

When she was young, she cried nonstop every day and only followed me around.

“And oppa. Even though Gwangwoon Securities is a big place, you’re a new employee so your salary will still be small. That’s when you need to save for retirement, look carefully at bank pensions. Ah. Working at a securities firm, can you not invest in ETFs? Still, you need to prepare step by step from now. Should I look up decent products for you?”

“Should I?”

“Of course! There keeps being talk that we won’t get pensions later. So you have to prepare when you’re young. And oppa, now that you have a proper job, you might think about marriage, shouldn’t you save money? For office workers like us with our salaries, saving 100 million is a lifetime.”

“..”

My sister was talking about a 100 million saving project next to me, carefully telling me about various savings accounts.

I quietly listened and nodded.

Indeed, for office workers to save 100 million, they really have to twist their whole body.

“So, how much is your salary, oppa? I’ll make plans tailored to that amount for you.”

“That’s.”

This is awkward.

How do I explain that the salary I received yesterday alone is over 700 million?