After the Divorce, I Found a Thousand Bitcoins - Chapter 48

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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I Got Divorced and Found a Thousand Bitcoins Episode 048

 

Kang Hyeon, who arrived in New York, rested for a day at the hotel provided by JP Morgan.

 

The next day, Kang Hyeon’s group visited JP Morgan Headquarters and immediately had a meeting with Richard Blake.

 

“It’s been a while, Mr. Choi.”

 

“You look a bit tired.”

 

“Haha, I’ve been quite busy lately with back-to-back meetings. Please, have a seat.”

 

“Yes.”

 

With the meeting room table in the center, Kang Hyeon’s group sat facing Richard Blake.

 

Several people from JP Morgan’s side also came out, indicating that this deal was quite important.

 

“Let’s get straight to the point.”

 

Richard nodded at Kang Hyeon’s words.

 

“As you already know from the materials, problems arose when Whiterock Credit refused to rollover Nereid’s bonds.”

 

When Richard looked to the side, his subordinate took over.

 

“The Nereid bonds held by Whiterock Credit amount to about 40 percent of the total bond issuance. The scale is around 300 million dollars.”

 

“Currently, Whiterock Credit has refused the final rollover, essentially demanding repayment.”

 

After hearing the basic explanation, Kang Hyeon spoke up.

 

“So Nereid doesn’t have the capacity to repay that money in the current situation?”

 

“That’s correct. Most of the revenue they generate goes right back out, so they have no cash.”

 

“What about getting loans from JP Morgan or other banks?”

 

“That’s impossible. The existing loan amount is already substantial, and Nereid has no additional collateral to provide.”

 

It was a situation where they were caught between a rock and a hard place.

 

Practically, the only remaining card was to sell the bonds.

 

Confirming once again why they had asked for help, Kang Hyeon asked.

 

“Let me ask directly. If we purchase these bonds, what benefits can JP Morgan offer us?”

 

JP Morgan, which had acted as intermediary for the bond sale, would have its reputation damaged if Nereid went bankrupt.

 

As an investment bank, it would suffer the worst kind of loss.

 

Naturally, they would certainly accept multiple losses to make this deal happen.

 

Richard also seemed to have expected such a demand from Kang Hyeon and presented conditions.

 

“We will waive the commission fees for this transaction.”

 

It was an exceptional condition.

 

One of the main sources of income for investment banks was commission fees.

 

Giving that up was essentially the same as doing this transaction for free.

 

But what Kang Hyeon wanted wasn’t just this much.

 

“In addition to that, I request special commission rates for KH Capital going forward.”

 

“Special commission rates?”

 

“Yes. All transactions must be included.”

 

A somewhat excessive demand.

 

Richard and the JP Morgan side had to hold a brief meeting.

 

Kang Hyeon calmly watched them whispering to each other.

 

‘Time is on my side.’

 

In this transaction, he was in the position of power.

 

He thought JP Morgan, being the weaker party, would accept his conditions to some extent.

 

Above all, the conditions he proposed weren’t excessive in themselves.

 

Conditions that precariously maintained the boundary line – if they accepted this, he had no intention of demanding more.

 

Soon, Richard, who had finished the brief meeting, nodded.

 

“Understood. However, this is difficult for me to decide on my own, so I’ll determine the final commission rate within two days and inform you.”

 

“Thank you. Then, could I visit Nereid Headquarters in the meantime?”

 

“Nereid Headquarters?”

 

“Yes. I want to confirm whether the technology they possess is just something that exists on paper, or if it actually exists.”

 

A somewhat unexpected request.

 

Most people in such bond purchases prioritize the profits they’ll gain rather than the technology.

 

But he wanted to verify the technology.

 

However, this was something they could sufficiently accommodate.

 

“Understood. Then I’ll arrange the schedule for tomorrow. Nereid Headquarters is quite far from here, so you may need to travel by plane. We’ll provide the transportation.”

 

“Yes, understood.”

 

The first meeting was concluded.

 

* * *

 

The next day.

 

Nereid Headquarters.

 

Nathan Karplen, who was both CEO and engineer, came out of the research lab after a long time.

 

“Geez… what’s with this sudden tour.”

 

His tone was heavily tinged with irritation.

 

It was natural since his research time had been taken away.

 

“Idiot! It’s not a tour, it’s an inspection. And by people who could become our new bondholders!”

 

At the words of Tom, who was CFO and Nathan’s friend, he scratched his unwashed hair from the past few days.

 

“Anyway, those guys only look at numbers. Can’t we just throw them some financial statements?”

 

“That won’t work. And please watch your words in front of those people! If we miss this opportunity, the company will really go under, and then everything you’ve achieved so far will crumble like a sandcastle!”

 

“Tsk.”

 

Nathan didn’t like people from the Financial District.

 

How many people would like their way of thinking, seeing everything only in terms of money?

 

But he hated not being able to do research even more.

 

So he had to humor them.

 

Soon, a helicopter flew in and landed on the building’s rooftop.

 

The people who got off the helicopter were three Asians and one Jewish person.

 

Among them, the only familiar face was the Jewish person.

 

‘So those Asians are the new money source.’

 

Putting on a mask on his face after a long time.

 

“Konnichiwa, Nihao! Nice to meet you!”

 

He blurted out their greeting methods.

 

The problem was.

 

“Huh?”

 

The atmosphere turned cold.

 

* * *

 

Nereid Meeting Room.

 

Tom, the CFO, was restless, and Nathan, who had caused trouble, had a soulless expression.

 

Watching them, Kang Hyeon came to one conclusion.

 

‘That man might be a genius, but as a CEO, he’s terrible.’

 

The first greeting he blurted out upon seeing them was the worst.

 

Such behavior of thinking of Japan and China and blurting out greetings from those countries upon seeing wealthy Asians was a kind of racially discriminatory thinking.

 

While many people would be offended by this, Kang Hyeon didn’t think much of it.

 

‘There’s even a saying that over half of the Asians you encounter overseas are Chinese, and if they’re wealthy, they’re Japanese.’

 

That didn’t justify Nathan’s behavior though.

 

Indeed, displeasure was clearly visible on Choi Byeon and Ha-ryul’s faces.

 

“Ahem!”

 

Then Richard Blake cleared his throat to change the atmosphere.

 

“Let me introduce again. This is CEO Kang Hyeon Choi from South Korea’s KH Capital.”

 

Richard deliberately mentioned South Korea to prevent Nathan from making another mistake.

 

“I’m Kang Hyeon Choi.”

 

“…I’m Nathan Karplen. I committed a great discourtesy just now.”

 

“Not at all. I don’t really mind, so please don’t worry about it.”

 

Whether he really doesn’t care.

 

Or if he’s just talking like that.

 

Nathan was rather confused.

 

His lack of skill in dealing with people also played a part.

 

Seeing his friend like that, Tom stepped in.

 

“I’m Tom Hiddleston, the CFO. Thank you for visiting us today.”

 

From Tom’s greeting, Kang Hyeon could tell that he was essentially the one running Nereid’s affairs.

 

After brief introductions, Kang Hyeon got to the point.

 

“As you’ve probably already been informed, we’re considering purchasing Whiterock’s bonds. However, we’re not confident in the current situation, so we’d like to check Nereid’s facilities and technical capabilities first.”

 

“Well… it’s fine to tell you about our technology, but the problem is whether you’ll be able to understand it…”

 

“Nathan!”

 

Tom urgently cut off Nathan’s words.

 

“Ah, why! It’s not like I said anything wrong. Our technology isn’t something a layperson can see and understand…!”

 

“The core of Nereid’s immersion cooling technology is stabilizing the surface of the liquid that touches the GPU’s power section and connectors, right?”

 

Ha-ryul, who had been quietly observing, spoke up.

 

Nathan’s eyes sparkled at her words.

 

“Oh! There’s someone who speaks our language! That’s right. Our technology creates a protective barrier in the surface stabilization layer, greatly improving stability. Thanks to this, we’ve prevented chemical reactions with the coolant.”

 

“Above all, your coolant management technology is excellent.”

 

“Haha! Exactly! Right! The key to liquid immersion technology is precisely coolant management. If management isn’t done properly, it can eventually lead to accidents.”

 

Like a fish in water, Nathan’s expression came alive.

 

He looked at Kang Hyeon’s group as if nothing had happened and said.

 

“I made quite a mistake here! You’re not just number-crunching finance people!”

 

Richard, who was indeed a finance person, had a complicated expression.

 

He was still rude, but there was no malice to be felt.

 

He was just an innocent fool who only knew research.

 

That’s why Kang Hyeon liked him even more.

 

‘These kinds of people are actually better. They don’t think complicated thoughts and don’t make things messy.’

 

While Kang Hyeon was making his judgment about Nathan, the technical discussion continued between Ha-ryul and Nathan.

 

Watching the situation, Tom spoke to Kang Hyeon.

 

“Shall we leave these two to handle the technical parts and go see the facilities?”

 

“Yes, that sounds good.”

 

Guided by Tom, Kang Hyeon and Choi Byeon were able to check Nereid’s facilities.

 

Tom continued explaining from the side, but since he didn’t really know the technical parts, they just recorded everything.

 

He planned to find proper answers by discussing with Ha-ryul when they returned.

 

“And this is the immersion cooling facility currently under research. It’s not complete yet and is still being researched, so it looks unstable.”

 

Tom pointed to one glass wall of the research lab.

 

Kang Hyeon approached the glass wall and looked down.

 

There was blue liquid contained like an ocean, with electronic devices submerged in it.

 

‘This is…’

 

Seeing that sight, Kang Hyeon could confirm a mysterious phenomenon visible only to his eyes.

 

‘It’s glowing golden.’

 

An intense golden light.

 

Just like how AI sectors were bound in black light, the entire liquid was glowing with golden light.

 

‘The technology was real.’

 

He could immediately understand what this meant.

 

It meant that the technology Nereid was developing was technology that could change the world.

 

* * *

 

After finishing their visit to Nereid, Kang Hyeon’s group returned to the hotel.

 

They gathered in Kang Hyeon’s suite room to continue their meeting.

 

Ha-ryul was the first to speak.

 

“What I learned from my conversation with CEO Nathan is that he has no interest in management. His head is filled only with research.”

 

“I agree. When I checked the internal financial statements Nereid provided, I couldn’t understand how the company operates.”

 

“Where does all that money go?”

 

“Most of it goes to research costs. Research expenses are being consumed excessively compared to the company’s size.”

 

“Does immersion cooling technology normally consume this level of research costs?”

 

“It’s because of CEO Nathan’s genius. He’s someone who doesn’t tolerate even the smallest errors, so he’s frequently changed equipment. Thanks to that, research costs have increased exponentially.”

 

You could call it the perfectionism of geniuses.

 

The problem was the price of the equipment used in his research.

 

Those facilities were naturally for new technology, so they weren’t ordinary things.

 

In other words, they couldn’t be mass-produced and required custom manufacturing, meaning they had to be expensive.

 

If he had been interested in management, he would have paid attention to such aspects, but Nathan was a researcher, not a manager.

 

Thanks to that, research costs increased exponentially, leading to the current situation.

 

“What do you think of his abilities, Ha-ryul?”

 

“Actually, he has knowledge that exceeds my level, so it’s hard to give a definitive answer… but I think his abilities are certain.”

 

If Ha-ryul, with her cautious personality, said this much, he must truly be an eccentric genius.

 

Plus that intense golden light shown by the liquid.

 

This decided what needed to be done.

 

“We need to meet with Whiterock.”

 

Having confirmed the technology and seen how it would develop, it was time to start negotiations with those who held the bonds.

 

* * *

 

The next day.

 

They received a call from JP Morgan.

 

-Mr. Choi, we’ll accept the conditions.

 

“Thank you. Then please arrange a meeting with Whiterock.”

 

-Understood. We’ll confirm it today and contact you.

 

After hanging up, Kang Hyeon let out a big breath.

 

“Phew…! With this, JP Morgan has become our biggest partner.”

 

With these benefits, using JP Morgan as the main partner would be the greatest advantage.

 

Soon after, Richard contacted them.

 

-We’re trying to set up a meeting with Whiterock tomorrow at 1 PM. Is that okay?

 

“Yes, please do that.”

 

The meeting with Whiterock was set.

 

* * *

 

Whiterock was a global fund ranking in the top 3 worldwide.

 

The asset scale they managed was an enormous size exceeding 13 trillion dollars.

 

‘Phew…! To think I’d come this far.’

 

In front of the meeting room.

 

Kang Hyeon calmed his pounding heart.

 

Actually, Whiterock was a company that everyone in the financial industry admired.

 

Just working there greatly increased one’s value.

 

But Kang Hyeon was about to face them as a business counterpart.

 

Then.

 

Click!

 

The meeting room door opened and a group entered.

 

Among them, a man with a height over 190cm and an imposing build came forward and extended his hand to Kang Hyeon.

 

“I’m Samuel Rosenthal, SVP of White Rock Credit.”

 

Senior Vice President.

 

In Korean terms, an executive vice president level person had come as the counterpart.

 

Kang Hyeon grasped his extended hand and said.

 

“I’m Kang Hyeon Choi, CEO of KH Capital.”

 

The trembling was gone.

 

He faced his opponent confidently and naturally, just as he always did.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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