Golden Spoon Investment Portfolio - Chapter 376

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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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376. You’ve truly outdone yourself this time.

Park Tae-hong’s eyes widened in shock, and Gil Seong-ho, his Chief Secretary, urgently called out to him from beside him.

“Chairman! What’s wrong?”
“Are you alright?”

Park Jin-hyung, the eldest son and president, and Jo Yun-won, the executive director, also gazed at Park Tae-hong with worried expressions.

“Phew.”

Park Tae-hong, who had forgotten to breathe, finally exhaled with a deflating sound and lifted his head.

“Really… are these figures written down correctly?”
“You know we don’t joke around when it comes to money.”

Seok-won shrugged his shoulders.
Park Tae-hong gazed down at the settlement statement in his hand with eyes gleaming with excitement, then burst into hearty laughter.

“Ha ha ha! I knew it. You’ve really pulled off something spectacular this time.”

At the sudden eruption of laughter that seemed to shake the room, the other three wore expressions of utter bewilderment.
Park Jin-hyung glanced sideways at his younger brother sitting beside him, then turned back to Park Tae-hong and asked.

“What did Seok-won do to make you react like this?”
“Ha ha! Check it yourself.”

Park Tae-hong, unable to contain his laughter, opened his mouth wide and extended the settlement statement he was holding.
Park Jin-hyung, who received the folder and reviewed its contents, also looked startled as he suddenly lifted his head to stare at Seok-won.

“What is this?”

As both Park Tae-hong and Park Jin-hyung displayed such reactions, the confusion between the remaining two grew even deeper.

‘What on earth is happening?’
‘Did the young master do something reckless?’

Seok-won replied matter-of-factly, as though it were nothing special.

“Last time, you entrusted me with the group’s surplus funds that you’d converted to dollars.”
“Right. Yes, that’s true.”
“This is the profit I generated from managing that money.”

Despite hearing the explanation, Park Jin-hyung continued to regard the settlement statement and his brother’s face with disbelief, alternating his gaze between them.

“It’s been less than three months since you took it… and you’ve multiplied the money this much?”
“If I’d leveraged the capital more aggressively, the returns would have been far greater. I’m actually a bit disappointed.”

At his nonchalant tone, Park Jin-hyung’s expression turned incredulous.

“That’s not the point right now.”
“I told you from the start—if you just entrust it to me, I’ll definitely multiply your money.”

Watching Seok-won grin wickedly and raise one corner of his mouth, Park Jin-hyung shook his head in defeat.

“This crazy bastard.”

Jo Yun-won, the Executive Director who had been harboring anxiety about entrusting all of the group’s surplus funds to Seok Won-han, finally couldn’t contain his curiosity and interjected.

“It appears the returns were quite substantial.”
“Well… let me show you first.”

Park Jin-hyung, unsure what to say, placed the folder he was holding on the table and spread it open so everyone could see.

[Investment Principal: $320,000,000
Return Rate: 34.4%
Gross Profit: $110,160,000
Miscellaneous Expenses: $22,032,000 (including management fees)
Net Profit: $88,128,000
Principal Included: $408,128,000]

“…!”
“Gasp!”

Upon reviewing the profits, Chief Secretary Gil Seong-ho and Executive Director Jo Yun-won simultaneously let out gasps of astonishment.
Unsatisfied with that alone, they even rubbed their eyes with their hands, wondering if they’d misread the numbers, before looking again—a reaction that prompted President Park Jin-hyung to nod knowingly.
He had experienced the same shock when he first saw the settlement statement.
At that moment, Chairman Park Tae-hong burst into hearty laughter once more, raising one arm to point at Seok-won.

“Ha ha ha! Didn’t I tell you that fellow has a gift for making money?”

Chairman Park Tae-hong beamed with unbridled pride, unable to contain his delight.

“It really does seem that way. How on earth did you manage it?”

Executive Director Jo Yun-won nodded, still wearing a bewildered expression.
Chief Secretary Gil Seong-ho then opened his mouth in genuine admiration.

“A 34% profit margin—I can only say it’s remarkable. You truly are the exceptional young chairman.”

Seeing these two executives, known throughout the company for their exacting standards, express genuine admiration, Chairman Park Tae-hong straightened his shoulders as though he himself had achieved the results.

“Everything’s fine, but the commission is a bit steep, that’s the problem.”

Chairman Park Tae-hong suppressed the corners of his mouth from rising involuntarily, speaking with feigned petulance.
Seok-won smiled and quipped in response.

“That’s why I gave you a family discount.”
“What good is that? You’re taking 20%!”
“Then perhaps you should entrust it to someone else next time.”
“Tsk, why does the conversation always turn out this way!”

Chairman Park Tae-hong snorted and turned his gaze away.

“How much is 80 million dollars in won?”

Executive Director Jo Yun-won, quickly calculating in his head, answered immediately.

“Today’s exchange rate is 1,021 won per dollar, so that comes to approximately 89.978 billion won.”
“Wow!”

Chairman Park Tae-hong let out an exclamation of delight, his face breaking into a satisfied smile.

“Nearly nine billion won. At that level, there’s no need to borrow money from operations at such expensive interest rates. What do you all think?”

Jo Yun-won, the Executive Director, glanced at Seok-won across from him before responding.

“Since the loan amount we were planning to take was five billion won, the profits alone should be sufficient.”
“I share the same opinion.”
“I also don’t think we need to borrow additional funds.”

Seeing that even Park Jin-hyung, the President, held the same view, Park Tae-hong, the Chairman, nodded in agreement.

“In times like these, it’s better to keep debt as small as possible. Then let’s forget about taking out that loan.”
“Yes.”
“Understood.”

At that moment, Seok-won, who had been listening to the conversation, interjected in a calm voice.

“If you don’t urgently need the funds, it would be better to leave the principal and profits in dollars without converting them for the time being.”

Park Jin-hyung, the President, immediately grasped the implication and spoke to his younger brother with a serious expression.

“You’re saying we should wait to see more foreign exchange gains, right?”
“Exactly. With the attacks from currency speculators and the continued outflow of foreign investment from the stock market, everyone here should be aware of that.”

The buoyant atmosphere dissipated at Seok-won’s words, and everyone’s expression grew heavy.
Thanks to reducing debt early and implementing austerity measures, the Daeheung Group’s situation was better than other conglomerates, but the economic downturn still dealt a significant blow.
In fact, since one of the main businesses was department stores, sales plummeted and the company took a direct hit.

“Watching Hong Kong and Southeast Asian countries go through all that chaos, what on earth were the Blue House and the government doing? Unbelievable.”

Park Tae-hong, the Chairman, crossed his arms and expressed his frustration.

“It’s true that preparations were insufficient, but with the presidential election just a few months away, it’s difficult to take aggressive action, which is making the situation even worse.”

Park Jin-hyung, the President, nodded slightly in agreement and added to the remarks.

“Indeed, just look at the Kichang Automobile situation—Deputy Prime Minister Lee Eun-hyung’s conspiracy theory about handing the company over to the Saseong Group has dragged things out and arguably made the situation worse.”

As the Gichang Group fell into crisis and independent survival became difficult, rumors circulated through the Yeouido Securities District that Lee Eun-hyung, the Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs and National Assembly member from Busan, intended to transfer Kichang Automobile—a Jeolla Province enterprise—to the Saseong Group, which operated an automobile manufacturing plant in Busan.
Consequently, Lee Eun-hyung, the Deputy Prime Minister at the center of these rumors, felt considerable pressure, and the government and Ruling Party, wary of inflaming regional sentiment in Jeolla Province ahead of the presidential election, could not actively intervene in resolving the Gichang Group crisis.

“The nation teeters on the brink of collapse, and what are these people doing?”

Chairman Park Tae-hong clicked his tongue, his expression one of utter disdain.

“In any case, the vulnerabilities are already exposed, and now that the currency speculators have launched their assault, it will be difficult to stop them.”
“Indeed.”

Chairman Park Tae-hong, recognizing the gravity of the situation, nodded in agreement with his second son’s assessment.

“If foreign reserves are depleted and we reach the point of requesting IMF bailout financing, the value of the dollar will skyrocket dramatically.”
“Even now, dollars command a premium at banks and even in Myeongdong, so as time passes, their value will only climb higher.”
“Therefore, if we hold onto them as long as possible and deploy them at the critical moment, we can not only maximize foreign exchange gains but also secure various ancillary benefits.”
“I share that assessment.”

Chairman Park Tae-hong fixed his gaze on Seok-won as he spoke.

“Given the financial market stabilization measures the government announced, once dollars flow into the group accounts, we’ll face pressure to exchange them. For now, I want you to hold them in your name.”
“Understood.”

Since this was the superior option, President Park Jin-hyung and the two executives raised no objections.
Chairman Park Tae-hong’s expression grew noticeably more relaxed as he leaned back against the chair.

“Thanks to you, I can finally breathe easier.”
“There is one more matter I wish to discuss.”
“Go ahead.”
“You mentioned previously that you would transfer the securities to me. Do you still feel the same way?”

At this, Chairman Park Tae-hong raised one eyebrow slightly, regarding Seok-won with renewed interest.

“So, you’ve now decided you want to take them?”
“Yes.”

Since rumors of separating Daehung Securities and the Venture Capital Fund as the younger son’s portion were already common knowledge throughout the group, neither President Park Jin-hyung nor the two executives expressed particular surprise.

“Rather than simply transferring the shares, which could create complications, I’ll acquire the Daehung Securities stake through a block deal.”

I had already discussed this matter with Chairman Park Tae-hong once before, so he showed no particular reaction, but the other three men stared at me with wide eyes.

“Given that the stock market crash has driven Daehung Securities shares down significantly, this is precisely the right timing to acquire equity stakes, wouldn’t you say?”
“That’s true enough.”

Chairman Park Tae-hong answered with a slightly pained expression.
With the KOSPI index having plummeted below half its previous level, all stocks across the board had hit rock bottom, and the shares of Daehung Securities and other group affiliates were no exception.

“I did a rough calculation, and the value of the securities stakes the group holds comes to approximately 22 billion won.”
“Ugh.”

An involuntary groan escaped from Chairman Park Tae-hong’s lips.
It was understandable—the equity stake he had acquired for 114.2 billion won just a few years ago had shrunk to such a pittance.

“As it happens, the management fee we agreed to deduct from the operational returns aligns almost perfectly with this amount. How about we call it even?”
“How much was the fee again?”

Chief Secretary Gil Seong-ho answered immediately.

“Two million, two hundred and three thousand dollars. At the current exchange rate, it matches up almost exactly with what the younger boss said regarding the value of the Daehung Securities stake.”

Chairman Park Tae-hong grumbled petulantly for no good reason.

“You little devil. You should be factoring in a control premium as well.”
“But in exchange, you’re receiving dollars, which means you can capture foreign exchange gains.”
“Tch….”

Finding himself at a loss for words, Chairman Park Tae-hong furrowed his brow in frustration.

“Damn it. The fee really was too expensive after all.”

Dealing with the second son always left me feeling like I was being fleeced while my eyes were wide open—it was absolutely maddening.

“If you keep this up, I won’t accept any more money management requests from you going forward.”
“What kind of nonsense is that!”
“It’s entirely my choice.”

Chairman Park Tae-hong grew anxious, genuinely worried that Seok-won might refuse to manage his money anymore.

“That’s just a figure of speech. Just a figure of speech.”

Then he gestured urgently toward Jo Yun-won.

“Jo Yun-won! Draw up the contract right now and transfer the equity stake.”
“You mean today, sir?”

Jo Yun-won was startled by the urgency of the request—this wasn’t something to be rushed through without careful consideration.

“Yes. If we drag this out and the stock price drops any further, the money we receive will shrink accordingly.”
“Ah. Yes. I understand.”
“Come on. Would I really do that?”

When Seok-won spoke playfully, Park Tae-hong responded with a wry smile.

“You’re more than capable of it.”
“That’s harsh.”

As Seok-won’s expression turned aggrieved, Park Jin-hyung beside him struggled to suppress a bursting laugh.

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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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