Golden Spoon Investment Portfolio - Chapter 364

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

364. Time keeps moving even as we speak, so let’s get moving!

“Bought 20 at 7.85!”
“Okay. Dan!”
“Goldman just put out 50 units for sale at 7.87.”
“Damn it. Buy them up now!”
“Trade executed.”
“Lehman Brothers just put 60 units on the market at 7.87!”

The Trading Center of the foreign exchange reserves—the front line defending the Hong Kong dollar—had not seen its lights extinguished for a single day since the currency speculators launched their assault, operating ceaselessly around the clock.
Battered by relentless waves of Hong Kong dollar selling day and night, the traders sat glued to their computer screens without so much as a lunch break, hastily consuming hamburgers, sandwiches, and pizza between transactions, simultaneously absorbing the volumes the hedge funds were dumping while desperately struggling to maintain the exchange rate band.
Tian Long-chan, sleeves rolled up without a tie, moved about frantically monitoring the exchange rate fluctuations and issuing instructions to the traders.
The coffee the female secretary had brought to his desk had grown cold, but he scarcely had a moment to take a sip.
With his gaze fixed on the large market display board opposite, Tian Long-chan picked up the mug, only then realizing the coffee had gone cold, and grimaced before setting it back down.

“How are things looking?”

At the sound of the voice from behind, he turned to see Heo Jo-gang, the director, standing there with an equally exhausted expression on his face.

“Not good.”

Tian Long-chan answered with one hand on his hip, his voice slightly hoarse from shouting so much.

“We’ve already spent over 5.1 billion dollars absorbing the selling pressure, but the intensity of the attacks shows no signs of weakening—if anything, it’s growing fiercer with each passing hour.”

Heo Jo-gang lifted his gaze, scanning the large display board where the exchange rate band was barely being maintained, and spoke to him calmly and encouragingly.

“I know it’s difficult, but we’re almost there now. Don’t worry about the means—just hold the line for one more day.”

Tian Long-chan, who had heard that the currency speculators were operating under a time constraint, let out a small sigh and nodded.

“I’ll do my best.”
“Yes. I’m counting on you.”

Heo Jo-gang gave Tian Long-chan’s shoulder a light pat with one hand.
Under normal circumstances, he would have felt pride at his superior’s recognition, but now an enormous burden weighed heavily on both his shoulders.

* * *

The Trading Floor of Quantum Fund, located on 7th Avenue in Manhattan, New York, was as loud as a marketplace, with telephones ringing incessantly and dozens of traders shouting their orders across the room.

“Sold 150 at 7.88!”
“Same as before, one more time!”
“Done!”

Ian, the Chief Manager, stood with his arms crossed, watching the Hong Kong dollar exchange rate displayed on the large market board, his brow furrowed in frustration as things weren’t going as smoothly as he’d hoped.

[HKD : 7.85 ]

In the London market alone, Quantum Fund had dumped hundreds of millions of dollars worth of Hong Kong dollars, but whenever the rate threatened to break through the band set at 7.75~7.85 per dollar, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority—Hong Kong’s central bank—would swoop in aggressively and buy up all the sell orders.
There had been a few occasions when the rate had pierced the upper band, but each time the HKMA’s forceful intervention had pulled it back down, leaving the exchange rate hovering stubbornly at 7.85 per dollar.

“Tsk.”

Ian clicked his tongue briefly, then rolled up his sleeves and called over Maleš, the Foreign Exchange Trading Team Leader, who was rallying the traders.

“Maleš!”

Maleš turned his head to look over, his face slightly flushed with excitement as he approached.

“You called for me.”
“How much Hong Kong dollar do we have left in our holdings?”
“We currently have approximately 25 billion Hong Kong dollars remaining.”

Ian’s eyes narrowed as he heard the answer.
Over the past four days, Quantum Fund had borrowed an additional 80 billion Hong Kong dollars to mount this relentless assault, and they’d already spent more than four-thirds of it.
Yet despite this massive expenditure, they hadn’t managed to break through the exchange rate band, and the Hong Kong government was still holding firm, which was frustrating indeed.

“Do you think we can make a decisive move with the remaining funds?”

Maleš shook his head in response to Ian’s gaze.

“Given that the HKMA isn’t backing down at all, I’m afraid it will be difficult.”

Ian shared the same assessment, so he rubbed his forehead as if troubled.

“Understood. Continue the attack, and report immediately once our ammunition drops below 1 billion Hong Kong dollars.”
“Yes, sir.”

Maleš acknowledged and returned to his station.
As Ian, the Chief Manager, lifted his gaze toward the exchange rate still hovering at 7.85, his expression clouded with concern, the telephone on the desk rang loudly.
The moment he picked up the receiver, Rodney, the CIO, immediately demanded a status update.

[How are things progressing?]

With the receiver pressed to his ear, Ian, the Chief Manager, gazed at the massive market board before him and responded.

“We’re continuing to pour money in, but we’re still stuck at 7.85 and trading sideways.”
[You understand there’s not much time left, don’t you?]
“…Yes.”
[Nations Bank and Citibank have agreed to lend us an additional 3 billion Hong Kong dollars. Use that to force a surrender by midnight, no matter what.]

At the news of an additional 3 billion Hong Kong dollars in short-selling funds, Ian, the Chief Manager’s eyes gleamed with renewed intensity.

“I’ll make sure Hong Kong capitulates.”

Ian, the Chief Manager, ended the call with a voice now brimming with vigor and set down the receiver.
At that moment, a trader’s voice rang out loudly across the floor.

“The New York Foreign Exchange Market has opened!”

* * *

As the battle between Hong Kong and the hedge funds raged fiercely across continents, the Daeheung Venture Capital Fund Management Department remained awake through the night, monitoring developments with acute vigilance.

“Yu.”
“Yes.”
“Over the past two days, how much Hong Kong dollars has the HKMA purchased from the selling pressure?”

Yu Seok-hyun checked his computer and answered immediately to Manager Choi Ho-geun’s question, whose eyes were bloodshot from lack of sleep.

“Roughly 120 billion Hong Kong dollars.”

At this, Jung Hwan-yeop, the section chief, who sat reclined against his chair with both hands cradling the back of his head, let out a low whistle.

“Over twenty trillion won in Korean currency being poured into defending the exchange rate—that’s truly impressive.”

Even as the other team members spoke with exhausted expressions, I kept my eyes fixed on the trading screen where sell-offs and purchases continued their relentless cycle.
Choi Ho-geun pulled a cigarette from the pack in his shirt pocket, placed it between his lips, and spoke in a measured tone.

“It’s proof that both sides are fighting with everything they’ve got.”

He flicked his lighter, lit the cigarette, and drew the white smoke deep into his lungs before exhaling it slowly.

“What’s certain is that whoever loses this battle will suffer catastrophic damage.”

Hong Jae-hee, dressed in a blouse and dress pants with her hair tied back, responded while watching the monitor.

“Since both sides are throwing every chip they have into the pot, the aftershocks will be severe, just as you said.”
“That would be fortunate. By now, foreign exchange reserves have likely hit rock bottom. If Hong Kong throws in the towel, we’re looking at a default crisis. Conversely, if the hedge funds lose, they’ll collapse en masse given how much leverage they’re using.”

Though Jung Hwan-yeop’s tone remained casual as always, his eyes had grown calm and settled.
Facing such extreme possibilities either way, the team members’ faces hardened, and they unconsciously swallowed hard.

“That’s why they’re fighting tooth and nail like it’s a matter of life and death.”

When Choi Ho-geun spoke in his weighty voice, the team members nodded in agreement.
Then a ringtone sounded, and Choi Ho-geun pulled his mobile phone from his pants pocket to answer the call.

“Yes. This is Choi Ho-geun.”
[It’s me.]

At the sound of Seok-won’s voice, Choi Ho-geun hastily stubbed out the cigarette he’d been smoking in the ashtray and spoke.

“Please go ahead, sir.”

All the team members’ eyes in the office immediately turned toward Choi Ho-geun as he took the call.

[What’s the Hang Seng Index futures at right now?]

Choi Ho-geun checked the Hang Seng Index futures displayed on the large market ticker installed on the front wall and answered immediately.

“6,500.”
[The average purchase price was 15,500, so that’s a 58% decline.]
“Yes, sir.”

As Choi Ho-geun answered, I couldn’t help but feel a secret admiration for Seok-won’s remarkable insight.
While everyone else was locked in a bloody, cliff-edge battle over the exchange rate, I had stepped away and generated jaw-dropping profits through futures trading instead.
Everyone else was wallowing in the mud, yet Seok-won alone was moving with an independent, towering brilliance that commanded respect.

[As the conflict between the Hong Kong Government and the hedge funds intensifies, the Hang Seng futures are falling even faster.]
“That’s part of it, but as the hedge funds continue their relentless assault, expectations are growing that the Hong Kong Government will soon surrender and raise the white flag, which is driving the futures down sharply.”
[The momentum of the hedge funds shorting the Hong Kong dollar is tremendous, so that makes sense.]

Seok-won paused for a moment, then spoke again.

[From now on, let’s liquidate all positions.]
“Right now, sir?”

Choi Ho-geun’s eyes widened as he asked.

[Yes. This is the bottom, so let’s close out everything without leaving a single position.]

Choi Ho-geun glanced at the large market board in front of him and tightened his grip on the mobile phone in his hand.

“Do you believe Hong Kong will win this battle?”

A voice came back without the slightest hesitation, brimming with conviction.

[Yes. So let’s finish the transactions before the New York Foreign Exchange Market closes.]

The Hong Kong Government had held its ground well enough, but to anyone’s eyes, the hedge funds had the advantage.
Most investors were predicting that by today, the Hong Kong Government would surrender and concede the exchange rate defense.
If the Hong Kong Government capitulated as most expected and abandoned its currency defense, the Hong Kong dollar would plummet sharply, and the Hang Seng index would crash further.
Yet Choi Ho-geun couldn’t hide his bewilderment at the instruction to liquidate all short-betting positions right here.
However, given that Seok-won had demonstrated such remarkably brilliant foresight and judgment up to this point, his hesitation didn’t last long.

“Understood. I’ll proceed as instructed.”
[Let me know once you’ve finished the liquidation.]

Seok-won ended the call with a brief statement.
As Manager Choi Ho-geun lowered the hand holding his mobile phone, Jung Hwan-yeop, who had been watching with perked-up ears, rushed over eagerly.

“What did the chairman say?”

Manager Choi Ho-geun folded his phone and slipped it back into his trouser pocket, then addressed his team with a commanding tone.

“Listen up, everyone. We’re liquidating our positions starting now, so offload all the volume as quickly as possible.”

The team members exchanged startled glances.
Jung Hwan-yeop released his hand from behind his head and leaned forward.

“If the hedge funds win, the Hang Seng will drop further. Are you saying we should liquidate now?”

The team members looked at him with confusion written across their faces.
Manager Choi Ho-geun addressed his unsettled team with an unwavering voice.

“The chairman believes Hong Kong will prevail, not the hedge funds.”
“Pardon?”

Jung Hwan-yeop made a bewildered sound but I ignored it.

“We’ve already generated more than enough profits regardless of the outcome. Rather than take on additional risk, closing out our position here is a sound decision.”
“Well, that’s true.”
“I’m exhausted from all the overtime monitoring the Hang Seng futures. At least that’s finally over.”

Though surprised, the team members quickly accepted the decision once they heard it came from Seok-won.
The Fund Management Department’s faith in Seok-won was absolute.
Manager Choi Ho-geun clapped his hands sharply and called out.
“Come on, time keeps moving even as we speak, so let’s get to work!”
“Yes, sir.”
“Understood!”

Jung Hwan-yeop and the team members immediately began liquidating positions, their fingers flying across keyboards and hands reaching for phone receivers as instructed.

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