Golden Spoon Investment Portfolio - Chapter 406

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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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406. So, do you think you can take it on?

Unlike the tense atmosphere from before, the two bank presidents left their seats with smiling faces.
Then Go Young-il, president of Daeheung Securities, turned his head to look at Seok-won, who was sitting comfortably, and spoke.

“If those two help us, we should be able to proceed with the merger quite smoothly.”

Seok-won lifted his teacup to his lips and replied.

“Even if they don’t actively help, they’ll at least refrain from interfering if they want to receive their bonuses. That’s how it’ll go.”
“Well, they’re getting 3 billion won out of it, so of course they will.”

Go Young-il, the president of Daeheung Securities, carefully broached the subject after gauging the mood for a moment.

“I understand you want to proceed with the merger without complications, but it seems you’ve been rather generous with the compensation.”
“It does appear that way.”
“3 billion won is enough to buy ten Gangnam apartments and have money left over. Honestly, half that amount would have sufficed.”

Seok-won leaned back and explained at a leisurely pace.

“As major banks among the top five commercial banks, the pride and self-respect of the executives and employees from Hanseong and Ilhan Bank will be extremely strong. That won’t change even after the merger.”
“That’s true.”

Go Young-il, the president of Daeheung Securities, nodded in agreement.

“Naturally, during the merger process, there will be fierce competition and conflict between people from the two banks as they each try to seize control. The rifts created that way will likely continue as factional disputes even after they’re unified.”

Since this was an easily foreseeable situation, President Go Young-il smacked his lips.

“If one side were clearly weaker, that might be better, but since both are large commercial banks with considerable pride, they’ll mix like oil and water.”
“If the two bank presidents fold their arms and become uncooperative in that situation, the merger work will become even more difficult.”
“So that’s why you’re giving them a golden parachute.”

When President Go Young-il responded as if he understood, I smiled.

“With so much of my term remaining, being forced out of the bank against my will—that’s bound to leave quite a bit of resentment.”
“I wouldn’t feel particularly pleased about it either, if I’m being honest.”

Seok-won shrugged his shoulders and took one final sip of green tea before setting the cup down.

“There’s an old saying—give an extra rice cake to someone you dislike. If we hand over a generous bonus, perhaps even more than necessary, he’ll abandon any thoughts of retaliation and instead focus his energy on completing the merger smoothly so he can secure his retirement funds. That’s the human nature we can count on.”

He then interlaced his fingers and rested his hands on his lap as he continued.

“If both bank presidents take active roles, we can minimize discord during the merger process and make it far easier to integrate the personnel from both institutions. If that happens, the three billion we’re spending will prove more than worthwhile.”

Go Young-il, having carefully considered the reasoning, nodded in understanding.

“Now that you mention it, that does seem to be the case.”

Seok-won, observing his reaction, smiled and tossed out a light jest.

“Are you envious watching both bank presidents pocket such generous bonuses?”
“Ah. No, not at all.”

Go Young-il hastily waved his hands in denial.
Seeing his flustered state, Seok-won chuckled and spoke.

“There’s no need for that. An even better gift awaits you.”
“Pardon?”

Go Young-il asked, his expression bewildered.
Seok-won glanced briefly at Cha Sang-woo, the director seated beside Go Young-il, then spoke with gravity.

“I’m giving you two weeks. Use that time to settle your personal affairs and complete the handover of duties to Director Cha.”
“…?”

Caught off guard by this sudden announcement, both Go Young-il and Cha Sang-woo stared blankly, unable to immediately comprehend.

“I’m sorry—what exactly do you mean by that?”

Go Young-il stammered out the question, and Seok-won replied with perfect composure.

“I’d like you to take charge of the newly formed bank, President Go.”
“Me? You’re asking me?”

President Go Young-il responded with a bewildered expression, completely taken aback by the unexpected proposal.

“Yes.”

Seok-won continued calmly, his gaze fixed on President Go Young-il.

“It’s not just about merging on the surface. To truly integrate the internal organization and workforce into a cohesive whole, we need a leader with exceptional management capabilities and strong leadership. I believe you’re the right person for this role.”

When Seok-won spoke so highly of him, President Go Young-il felt deeply moved inside.
Moreover, the newly formed merged bank would be Korea’s first mega-bank with assets exceeding 100 trillion won—becoming its inaugural chairman would be an extraordinary honor.

“What do you say? Can you take on this responsibility?”
“Of course. Though I may be lacking, if you entrust me with this, I will do my utmost to live up to your expectations!”

President Go Young-il answered with a flushed face, his voice brimming with determination.

“I feel reassured knowing President Go will be managing the bank.”

Seok-won shifted his gaze toward Director Cha Sang-woo.

“I trust Director Cha will also manage the securities business well.”

Director Cha Sang-woo, suddenly promoted to president, answered while trying to suppress his excitement.

“I won’t disappoint you.”

Seok-won’s expression showed satisfaction at their responses.

“The merger process will inevitably bring discord and growing pains. It will take time to fully digest these challenges and establish stable operations. I’ll guarantee you a four-year term, so feel free to demonstrate your full capabilities.”

Typically, the term for a commercial bank president was two years, with an additional year often granted for a total of three years.
But guaranteeing a minimum four-year term, including potential reappointment, meant Seok-won was clearly backing them with his full support.
Moved by such strong trust and confidence, President Go Young-il stood up abruptly and bowed deeply to Seok-won.

“Thank you!”

* * *

November 18, 1997. Gwanghwamun Government Complex Building 1.
With the presidential election just one month away, the Ministry of Finance and Economy was gripped by tension.
In the spacious office, Deputy Prime Minister Choi Jin-woo sat at the center while ministry executives occupied both sides of the sofa with grave expressions.
The room was thick with smoke from chain-smoking, but Deputy Prime Minister Choi Jin-woo paid no mind as he pulled out a fresh cigarette, placed it between his lips, and lit it.
He drew the white smoke deep into his lungs, exhaled it slowly, and spoke with a face taut with tension.

“They said the spread on the ten-year bonds issued by the Industrial Bank has skyrocketed to 10 percent?”

Jung Ji-hoon, the director of the Financial Policy Bureau, answered with an uncomfortable expression.

“Yes. The elevated rates that spiked immediately after the second credit rating downgrade announcement have not fallen and continue to remain high.”
“Damn it. Even though we had to accept the International Monetary Fund bailout, Korea’s economic fundamentals are superior even among Asian nations. This is simply outrageous!”

Feeling wronged, Deputy Prime Minister Choi Jin-woo slammed his palm against the armrest of the sofa and vented his frustration.

“Indeed, sir.”
“Frankly, downgrading the rating twice in succession like this is an excessive measure, isn’t it?”

The ministry executives gathered there could not hide their anger and sighs at the international credit rating agencies’ actions—adding fuel to the fire by lowering credit ratings while the nation struggled through such difficult circumstances.
In the midst of this, Vice Minister Shin Seung-gi spoke in a weary voice.

“We lodged strong protests with Moody’s and S&P regarding this downgrade, but we only received textbook responses that it was a justified measure taken in consideration of various factors.”
“Bah! Justified, my foot. They’re in cahoots with those hedge fund bastards attacking us.”

Deputy Prime Minister Choi Jin-woo, his face flushed with anger, snorted and twirled the cigarette between his fingers as he asked.

“Are the attacks on the won continuing in the foreign exchange market?”

Jung Ji-hoon then answered with a worried expression.

“Yes. The currency speculators who withdrew after the International Monetary Fund bailout have resumed their attacks following the credit rating downgrade announcement, and have already sold over 1.5 billion dollars worth of won.”
“Ugh.”

Deputy Prime Minister Choi Jin-woo, who had inadvertently let out a groan, pressed further.

“How much foreign exchange reserves do we have left?”

Jung Ji-hoon hesitated for a moment before responding in a voice that grew increasingly faint.

“Only… 10.5 billion dollars.”
“That’s all we have?”

Choi Jin-woo, the Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, immediately frowned and pressed him further.
Jung Ji-hoon lowered his head like a man bearing guilt, his voice tinged with shame.

“As I mentioned earlier, a considerable amount of foreign currency is being consumed defending against currency speculators. Moreover, after the credit rating downgrade, Japanese banks have intensified their loan recall efforts, causing our foreign exchange reserves to plummet significantly.”

Choi Jin-woo’s face darkened at those words.

“It feels like everyone is closing in for the kill from all sides.”

More than half of Korea’s external debt consisted of funds borrowed from Japan.
He had already made multiple requests to the Japanese Government to prevent Japanese financial institutions from recalling their loans, but those efforts had yielded nothing—Japan itself was drowning in non-performing loan problems and had no room to help.
Choi Jin-woo stubbed out a half-smoked cigarette in the ashtray on the table and spoke with grave seriousness.

“At this rate, the foreign currency-denominated bond issuance we were planning for next month—the one worth 10 billion dollars—will be impossible.”

Shin Seung-gi, the Vice Minister, shook his head.

“Everyone is dumping Korean bonds right now, so the likelihood of issuance failure is high. And if we push forward recklessly only to have the Industrial Bank’s bond issuance fail, followed by the government bond issuance, the fallout will be catastrophic.”
“You’re right.”

Choi Jin-woo swallowed a sigh and nodded heavily.
Jung Ji-hoon then interjected carefully, gauging the atmosphere with cautious concern.

“If foreign currency continues to drain at this rate, we won’t make it past tomorrow. Our foreign exchange reserves will drop below three digits.”

The Deputy Prime Minister’s face hardened as he paused in thought before speaking.

“What if we suspend currency defense again?”
“We can’t! The exchange rate is already high—if we do that, there’s no way to predict how far it will spike.”

Shin Seung-gi urgently stopped him.
It was merely a frustrated comment thrown out in desperation, and Choi Jin-woo himself understood that abandoning currency defense now would cause far too much damage.
Choi Jin-woo exhaled deeply, feeling the walls closing in from every direction.

“We’re completely stuck between a rock and a hard place.”
“The only way to resolve our current situation is to secure the second tranche of support from the International Monetary Fund, IBRD, and ADB as quickly as possible.”

At Shin Seung-gi’s words, Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Choi Jin-woo furrowed his brow.

“Who doesn’t know that? But you’re well aware that International Monetary Fund Chairman Townsend is blocking the second tranche unless the presidential candidates clearly promise to faithfully implement the existing agreement without mentioning renegotiations.”
“That’s….”

Shin Seung-gi fell silent, his expression darkening.
After the presidential candidates broke the memorandum signed before negotiations and began advocating for renegotiations with the International Monetary Fund, Chairman Townsend had dismissed such notions outright before the press.
However, while the public had dismissed it as merely an incident during the presidential election period, behind the scenes Townsend had suspended the second tranche of support and was applying strong pressure on the Korean government.
I was already bearing all responsibility for accepting International Monetary Fund bailout and being treated as a traitor who destroyed the nation, while also facing investigations by the Board of Audit and Inspection.
As the difficulties mounted due to irresponsible remarks from politicians, Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Choi Jin-woo and the Ministry of Finance and Economy officials could only sigh.
After pondering for a long while with my arms crossed, I bit my lower lip firmly.

“This won’t do. I’ll have to visit the presidential candidates again and persuade them somehow.”
“We’ve already met with them, but it yielded no meaningful results.”

Shin Seung-gi spoke with evident exhaustion in his voice.

“No matter how fixated they are on the election, once they understand we’re on the brink of national default, they’ll come to their senses. No one wants to inherit a bankrupt nation after winning the election.”

Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Choi Jin-woo steeled my resolve and set my expression with determination.
Now was a time when we had to do whatever it took—grasp at straws if necessary—to prevent national default.
I could only hope the presidential candidates would realize this truth.

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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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