Golden Spoon Investment Portfolio - Chapter 110

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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110. Since we’ve brought down the pound, the yen should be no different.

One New York Plaza Building, Manhattan, New York, USA.
In the spacious Executive Office of the Eldorado Fund, with the brilliant East River flowing serenely beyond the sunlit windows, Seok-won sat in the center of the sofa while Landon Shore and Andrew occupied seats on either side.
Seok-won, dressed in a navy striped suit with a pocket square for accent, set down his coffee cup—rich with the aroma of fresh beans—and began to speak.

“The Nikkei rose another five hundred points or so yesterday.”

Andrew, who oversaw trading operations, responded immediately.

“Yes. Large buy orders for Nikkei futures came in from Singapore, pushing the index up to 18,414.23. However, the buying pressure hasn’t been strong enough to suggest we’ve found a bottom and are rebounding. It appears we’re still in a precarious position.”

At the mention of Singapore, Seok-won could easily guess who was behind the futures purchases.

“Brad Cooper, who’s betting long on the Nikkei, seems to be desperately struggling to maintain his position.”
“Still, the fact that he’s managed to push the Nikkei up five hundred points alone suggests he’s no ordinary player.”

Andrew let out a derisive laugh from across the table.

“He’s nothing but a liar and a fraud.”

Ever since discovering that Brad Cooper’s entire reputation had been built on lies, Andrew had maintained a consistently cynical attitude toward him.
Andrew, who had once believed in Cooper’s genuine talent and had even considered recruiting him, felt all the more disappointed and betrayed.
Seok-won, with one leg crossed, gave a slight nod of agreement.

“Andrew’s right. No matter how desperately he squeezes out everything he has, a single individual cannot swim against the tide of such a massive market.”

His eyes gleamed coldly.

“Rather, the harder he struggles, the deeper he’ll sink into the mire—dragging not just himself but everyone around him toward ruin.”

Andrew leaned forward slightly and added his thoughts.

“We can’t know for certain, but Brad Cooper’s positions must have grown enormously over the past few days.”

Landon Shore, seated across from him, gave a small nod and continued the conversation.

“To prevent the index from falling, they would have had to sweep up every futures sale that came through. That’s probably what happened.”
“The problem is that the Nikkei isn’t some small emerging market index—it’s the second-largest after the United States. It’s not a market where a single trader can play around with impunity.”

Seok-won smiled faintly as he observed Andrew’s clear-eyed grasp of the situation.

“Exactly. On top of that, with the massive damage from the great earthquake and then the yen appreciation hitting exports on top of it all, the market is flooded with nothing but bad news.”

Seok-won spoke with decisive certainty.

“Betting on a rise in these conditions is truly foolish.”

A stronger yen made export goods more expensive, which was catastrophic for export-oriented companies.

‘If there were no alternative products available, even at a higher price, it wouldn’t have been such a critical issue.’

But Korea was there, fiercely competing in semiconductors, consumer electronics, and shipbuilding—Japan’s primary exports—nipping at their heels and threatening their market position.
Japanese companies, while outwardly pretending not to view Korea as a competitor, were inwardly deeply vigilant, and with successive bad news, their anxiety could only intensify.
Then Landon Shore looked between the two men with genuine curiosity and asked.

“Brad Cooper must know all this. So why doesn’t he give up? Why does he keep acting so recklessly?”

Seok-won leaned back in his chair at an angle and answered.

“It’s not that he won’t give up. He can’t.”
“Hmm.”

Landon Shore’s expression hardened as he let out a low murmur.

“If he can’t extract himself, things could get really serious when this blows up.”

Then, struck by a sudden thought, Landon Shore looked at him with disbelief.

“Barings Bank won’t go bankrupt from this incident, will it?”
“That’s something no one knows.”
“…!”

Looking at Landon Shore and Andrew with their eyes wide open, he spoke with a meaningful expression.

“Even a bank with over 230 years of history will naturally have to close its doors if serious problems arise.”

If that truly came to pass, the bonds issued by Barings Bank would become nothing more than worthless scraps of paper in an instant.
In that case, the Eldorado Fund, which had sold a massive quantity of Barings Bank bonds on my instructions, would reap enormous profits simply by sitting back and waiting.

“Did you foresee all of this from the very beginning?”

Landon Shore couldn’t hide his astonishment, his mouth falling open in admiration.
Andrew too gazed at me with curious eyes.

“Of course not. But when I confirmed that Brad Cooper’s recklessness had crossed the line, I did anticipate that Barings Bank would be shaken if things came to a head.”

I shrugged and continued speaking calmly.

“However, seeing Brad Cooper refuse to stop and spiral out of control like this, I’m now convinced that Barings Bank’s fate is sealed.”

A mere general manager—not even an executive—had been committing such staggering transgressions over years, yet the bank’s own internal audits had failed to catch any of it, remaining completely oblivious. This could only mean the bank wasn’t even functioning with basic operational integrity.

‘Or perhaps the executives genuinely didn’t know about Brad Cooper’s excesses happening in Singapore?’

It was possible they knew about his rule-breaking but simply turned a blind eye to the substantial profits Brad Cooper was generating.

‘And by the time they realized it was too late, the fire had already consumed the entire house.’

As I continued these brief reflections, Landon Shore and Andrew marveled at the insight I’d demonstrated—even if they hadn’t anticipated outright bankruptcy, they could see how I’d grasped the trajectory of events.

“For now, regarding the Barings Bank bonds—keep bankruptcy in mind and liquidate your positions at whatever timing you both deem appropriate.”

It was my way of saying I trusted their abilities completely and would leave the trading entirely in their hands.
Startled by my words, Landon Shore and Andrew instinctively exchanged glances.
After working in tandem under my direction all this time, these two had reached a point where a mere meeting of eyes was enough to understand each other’s thoughts.

“You’re saying we should conduct the trades at our own discretion?”

Landon Shore asked for confirmation, and I nodded.

“That’s right.”

I regarded the two men, who still wore expressions of surprise, and asked calmly.

“Why? Don’t you have confidence?”
“Of course not! Absolutely not.”

Landon immediately shook his head in response.

“Just leave it to me, and I’ll generate the maximum returns possible.”

Andrew also displayed strong enthusiasm and an actively positive attitude.

“Then I’ll look forward to the results.”

Seok-won spoke with an expressionless face on the surface, though a faint smile played at the corners of his mouth.
As the fund continued to grow in scale, it had become difficult for him to control everything personally.
So while he would make the major decisions himself, he intended to establish a system where Landon and Andrew would autonomously handle the detailed operations.

‘Fulfilling my dreams is wonderful, but I’ve been given this miraculous second chance at life—I can’t waste it merely earning money without enjoying myself.’

To truly enjoy this new life, I needed trusted associates who possessed not just reliability but genuine capability.
That’s why I intended to test their abilities by gradually entrusting them with increasingly significant responsibilities.

‘After all, it’s always easier to have competent subordinates working beneath you.’

Seok-won wore a profound expression as he contemplated how to put these two through their paces.
Sensing an inexplicable chill, both Landon and Andrew shivered involuntarily.

“What’s wrong with you two?”
“My apologies. I suddenly felt a chill and got cold….”
“I’m experiencing something similar—it’s quite strange.”
“Are you both feeling unwell?”

Seok-won asked with a tone of feigned concern.
These two would need to work hard going forward, and it wouldn’t do if they fell ill already.

“No, that’s not it.”
“Since we’re fine now, it must have just been a momentary thing.”

Both Landon and Andrew laughed it off as nothing serious, but his expression remained grave.

“Since trading requires making quick and accurate decisions at every moment, health management is equally important.”
“Ah….”
“My apologies.”
“While we’re on the subject, let’s add provisions to the medical insurance we offer to fund employees so that they can receive regular health checkups every year—not just for themselves, but for their families as well.”
“Yes, I’ll see to it.”

I wasn’t sure why Seok-won had suddenly become so focused on health management, but since it was a good initiative regardless, Landon Shore, who oversaw fund operations, nodded in agreement.
Unlike Korea, which had a universal healthcare system, in the United States, company-provided medical insurance was one of the greatest benefits an employee could enjoy.
And the fact that expensive health checkups could now be extended to employees’ families as well was a substantial benefit.

‘That’s certainly true, but….’
‘Why does something feel off about this?’

Landon Shore and Andrew felt a vague sense of unease even as they were pleased.
The two men, tilting their heads in confusion, quickly pushed aside their lingering doubts and focused on the conversation that followed from Seok-won.

“How’s the dollar-yen exchange rate today?”

Andrew, receiving the attention, answered immediately.

“It’s holding steady around 95.20 yen with no significant fluctuations.”
“Given how much it’s swung between 100 and 90 yen over the past few days, this is probably a good time for it to catch its breath.”

He nodded slightly in agreement with Landon Shore’s assessment.

“The movements have certainly been intense.”
“Intense doesn’t even begin to cover it—it’s been like riding a roller coaster. I’m sure there are more than a few traders on Wall Street who caught the wave wrong and took heavy losses before packing it in.”

Landon Shore, speaking with exaggeration, glanced at him and then broke into a grin.

“Of course, we went the opposite direction and raked in enormous profits.”

At that, Andrew cautiously gauged Seok-won’s reaction before speaking.

“Given the export issues you mentioned earlier, the Japanese Government would likely want to avoid further yen appreciation, so there’s a good chance the exchange rate will move sideways without major swings from here on.”
“Are you saying we should close out our positions now that we’ve made our gains?”

Seok-won asked directly, resting his chin on one hand, and Andrew nodded.

“That’s correct.”

I turned my head to look at Landon Shore, who was seated on the sofa to my left, and posed the question.

“What do you think, Landon?”
“We’ve already made substantial profits, and even if the rate climbs further from here, the margin won’t be particularly large.”

Landon Shore continued carefully, observing my expression as I listened quietly to the discussion.

“Therefore, considering the risk of a sudden shift in sentiment that could cause the exchange rate to plummet, I believe it wouldn’t be unreasonable to exit the position now as a risk mitigation strategy.”

It was a reasonable argument—attempting to squeeze out every last yen only to have the exchange rate collapse that very day would wipe out all the profits we’d earned.
But my judgment differed.

“I don’t see it that way.”
“…?”
“We haven’t reached the summit yet—we’re barely halfway up the mountain.”
“You mean the yen will climb even further from here?”

Landon Shore furrowed his brow as he asked.

“Yes. If my projections are correct, we could see it reach around 80 yen.”

My unwavering conviction left both Landon Shore and Andrew visibly taken aback.
The exchange rate was already absurdly high.
The prospect of it climbing even further—not to 90 yen, but all the way to 80 yen—was simply bewildering.
True to form, Andrew immediately voiced his skepticism and objected.

“At 80 yen, we’d be beyond extreme strength—the foreign exchange market would be on the verge of becoming uncontrollable. Do you really think it will reach that level?”
“I share Andrew’s view. No matter how I consider it, reaching that level seems unlikely.”

At that, I straightened my posture and spoke with unmistakable gravity.

“Under normal circumstances, you’d be right.”
“….”
“But what if an invisible hand intervened and deliberately drove the exchange rate upward?”

Andrew’s face registered disbelief as he responded.

“The pound, the mark, and the yen are the next most-traded currencies after the dollar. But who could possibly manipulate exchange rates artificially?”
“While the yen functions as a reserve currency, it’s not quite the same as the dollar, which has the full backing of the United States government and the Federal Reserve. And there’s already a precedent—the pound collapsed once before.”
“!”
“Are you referring to when George Hamilton attacked the Bank of England?”

Seok-won watched the two men’s flustered expressions, realizing they hadn’t expected that name to surface here, and a knowing smile played across his lips.

“Exactly. If the pound could be brought down, why not the yen?”

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