Golden Spoon Investor

Early dawn on the 22nd, just a few days before the Christmas holidays.

Seok-won lay alone in a large king-size bed at the centre of a dimly lit bedroom, deeply asleep.

At 5:30 AM, the bedside clock showed the time as the screen of his phone lit up, accompanied by the ringing of a call.

"Uhm…"

Seok-won, shifting slightly in his sleep, reached out, fumbling over the nightstand before grabbing his phone.

With his eyes still half-closed, he brought the phone to his ear and answered in a drowsy, hoarse voice. 

"Hello?"

[I'm sorry to disturb you at this hour, Boss.]

Hearing Landon's slightly excited voice, Seok-won sat up and forced himself to shake off his drowsiness as he responded.

"No, it's okay."

Turning his head, he glanced at the bedside clock and ran a hand down his face.

"What's going on at this hour?"

[President Zedillo just made a public announcement on television, stating that the Mexican government is no longer capable of repaying its national debt.]

At that moment, all traces of sleep vanished. Seok-won gripped his phone tightly and asked again for confirmation.

"Are you saying that Mexico has declared a moratorium?"

[Yes, that's correct.]

A moratorium refers to a temporary suspension of principal and interest payments by a government or local authority facing difficulties in debt repayment.

[According to Reuters, Mexico's foreign exchange reserves have dropped to less than $6 billion.]

"Is this information reliable?"

[Yes. Our calculations yielded similar results.]

If true, Mexico's foreign reserves, which had once neared $30 billion, had been slashed to a fifth of that amount in just a year.

[As rumours spread that Mexico's foreign reserves were running low, investors rushed to withdraw their funds. If the government hadn't declared a moratorium, they wouldn't have lasted a day.]

Given that Mexico's external debt far exceeded its reserves, the situation made perfect sense.

"President Zedillo's swift response may have averted a total national collapse, but for Mexico, the real nightmare is only beginning."

[That's right. The currency market was already reacting the moment the moratorium was declared.]

Since the government had essentially admitted it had no money and laid itself bare, it was inevitable that the exchange rate would spiral out of control.

"How far has it fallen?"

[The psychological support level of 4 pesos has been broken, and the currency has continued to plummet, now dropping to 5 pesos.]

The Mexican peso was quite literally turning into worthless paper in real-time.

[Since the announcement came after the stock market closed, share prices haven't been affected yet. But once the market opens tomorrow, it will nosedive immediately.]

"Not knowing how much worse things will get, people will likely dump everything and flee."

[I would do the same.]

While the bond market and Mexico's economy were plunging into chaos, Seok-won—who had anticipated this scenario and placed a short bet—was hitting the jackpot.

The worse the situation got, the more his returns would skyrocket exponentially.

"Keep monitoring the situation, and let me know immediately if any new information comes in."

[Understood.]

Before his regression, Seok-won would have been able to track Mexico's situation in real time, but now, he found it frustrating that he couldn't do so directly.

[I'll summarize the current information and send it over by fax.]

"Do that."

Ending the call, Seok-won threw off the sheets and got out of bed.

He checked whether the fax machine installed in one corner of the room was powered on properly. Then, needing to fully wake up, he headed to the bathroom for a shower.

A short while later, as he stepped out, rubbing his hair with a towel, the fax machine whirred to life, spitting out documents that Landon had sent from New York.

"Let's see what we have here."

With his well-defined upper body exposed and only a pair of pants loosely hanging on his hips, Seok-won walked over to the fax machine.

He picked up the freshly printed documents and began meticulously reviewing them, page by page.

***

Wall Street, New York

The bombshell from Mexico had sent shockwaves through global bond and foreign exchange markets, but overall, the atmosphere remained relatively calm.

Since the Mexican foreign exchange crisis had been brewing since the beginning of the year, the situation was somewhat anticipated.

Of course, the fact that Mexico had gone as far as declaring a moratorium without abandoning its pegged exchange rate system was unexpected. However, many believed that, while difficult, the situation could be managed once the peso was devalued.

But that hope was shattered in an instant.

"The Mexican government just announced the peso devaluation!"

"By how much?"

All eyes on the trading floor turned to the Bloomberg terminals installed in each booth.

For a brief moment, the room fell into complete silence—only to erupt seconds later with groans and curses.

"Seriously? Given the circumstances, they're only devaluing it by 30%?"

"Everyone knows they're broke, yet they refuse to abandon the pegged exchange rate and are only making minor adjustments? That's insane."

"Did the Mexican government suddenly find some secret stash of money that I don't know about?"

"If they had, they wouldn't have declared a moratorium in the first place."

"Then what the hell is this?"

"Damn it! I had high hopes because the new president was an economist."

Traders were visibly frustrated with the peso devaluation, which fell far short of expectations.

"Do you think this will be enough to ease market anxiety?"

"Not a chance."

"It's like trying to put out a wildfire with a bucket of water."

Given the magnitude of Mexico's economic crisis, no one believed that such a half-hearted measure could resolve the situation.

Instead, traders saw it as a clear signal to abandon the ship. With no hope left, they rushed to dump their pesos.

"Sell 70 million pesos at market price!"

"Dump the pesos! 10 million!"

"Get rid of everything before it drops further!"

Traders grabbed their phones, shouting orders, or ran to the trading desks, frantically signalling to offload their peso holdings at any cost.

Contrary to the Mexican government's expectations, the announcement of the devaluation only accelerated the peso's downward spiral, plummeting even faster than before.

***

A Few Days Later.

With only a short time left until the final trading day of the year, the Daheung Securities trading floor remained as tense and fast-paced as ever.

Traders kept their eyes glued to their screens or held phones to their ears, determined to squeeze out every last bit of profit before the closing bell.

Investment Team 4, now led by Choi Ho-geun after Seok-won's promotion to General Manager/Director, was no exception.

The team had already endured plenty of backhanded gossip about riding on Seok-won's coattails.

Not wanting to hear yet another round of remarks about their performance slipping in his absence, they pushed themselves even harder, fully engrossed in their trades.

Choi Ho-geun stood up from his seat, casually rolling up the sleeves of his dress shirt before glancing at his watch.

Turning to Deputy Manager Jung Hwan-yeop and Yoo Seok-hyun, who were still locked into their trades in front of the bulky CRT monitors, he spoke.

"Five minutes until the market closes. Start wrapping things up."

Jung Hwan-yeop, his face devoid of any humour, absentmindedly licked his dry lips out of habit as he placed his final sell order.

A moment later, as the transaction was completed and the stock market officially closed, he let out a long breath he had been holding in.

"Phew!"

"All done?"

Choi Ho-geun, now standing behind him, rested a hand on the back of his chair and asked.

"Yes. I've cleared everything, including our position in Orim Paper."

"Good work."

Choi Ho-geun gave him a light pat on the shoulder before turning his attention to Yoo Seok-hyun.

"Everyone, good job today. Print out today's transaction records and hand them over to Miss Hong."

"Got it."

Jung Hwan-yeop spun his chair around and looked up at the large ticker board mounted on the trading floor wall.

Seeing the once rapidly changing numbers suddenly frozen in place, as if on cue, left him feeling oddly sentimental.

"That's it. The final trade of 1994 is done."

He murmured, a mix of relief and nostalgia flashing across his face.

"Why the sudden sentimentality?"

"Team Leader, the market's closed—let's go for a drink tonight!"

Deputy Manager Jung Hwan-yeop made a drinking gesture toward Team Leader Choi Ho-geun.

Yoo Seok-hyun, who had been hovering nearby, immediately brightened and chimed in.

"We haven't even had our year-end party yet. This is a good excuse to get together."

"That's right, Manager—no, I mean, Team Leader."

With Hong Jae-hee also voicing agreement, Choi Ho-geun let out a hearty laugh, as if he had no choice.

"Alright, drinks are on me tonight."

"Ohhh! Now that's what I call a real man!"

"I knew I could count on you, Team Leader!"

As the men cheered excitedly, Hong Jae-hee quickly grabbed the phone.

"Where should we go? It's year-end, so if we don't book in advance, we won't find a table."

"Let's go to that grilled pork skin place behind the office."

"Again? Seriously?"

Jung Hwan-yeop openly frowned in disappointment.

"We just went there last week."

Even Hong Jae-hee, who had been secretly craving meat, hesitated and gave Choi Ho-geun a cautious look.

But the team leader stood firm.

"What's wrong with it? It's cheap and tasty, and there's no better place around! Plus, since we're regulars, they sometimes give us freebies."

"Let's be real—it's not about the taste, it's about the price."

At that, Choi Ho-geun shot Jung Hwan-yeop a sideways glare.

"Hey, then why don't you pay for it?"

"Oof… Team Leader, that's a little harsh!"

"We demand beef!"

Led by Jung Hwan-yeop, the team members playfully booed in protest.

The cheerful atmosphere was thanks to Investment Team 4 achieving the highest performance in Daheung Securities' trading department.

It wasn't just their team—most other teams had also performed well, riding the wave of a bullish market. With such strong results across the board, everyone's spirits were high.

At that moment, Seok-won entered, dressed in a perfectly tailored bespoke suit. Scanning the trading floor, he spoke.

"Great work, everyone, right to the very end."

Upon seeing Seok-won, the employees quickly scrambled to stand up from their seats.

"It's fine, no need to stand up—everyone just stays seated and listens."

But none of the employees were bold enough to remain seated in front of their direct superior.

More importantly, they were well aware that Seok-won was part of the owner's family, so everyone immediately stood at attention with serious expressions.

If this had been before his regression, anonymous posts would have flooded the office worker forums complaining about the stiff atmosphere.

However, in this era, such workplace dynamics were considered normal.

Seok-won smirked slightly but didn't say anything about it.

With all eyes on him, he began speaking.

"You've all worked hard despite everything that's happened. To wrap up the year on a good note and aim for even better results next year, I thought we could all get together for a drink tonight. What do you think?"

The employees immediately brightened.

"Sounds great!"

"I was already in the mood for a drink—how did you read my mind?"

No one had planned to let a day like this pass without a proper celebration.

Watching their enthusiastic reactions, Seok-won smiled.

"I've already made a reservation at Chowon House, across the main street. Take your time wrapping things up, and let's meet there by 4 PM. Oh, and just so you know, we're having Korean beef tonight."

"Ohhh!"

"Looks like it's a grilling night!"

"You're the best, Director!"

As expected, there wasn't a single person who disliked high-quality Korean beef.

While the excitement buzzed around the room, Seok-won spoke up once more.

"Oh, and one more announcement. I spoke with the Chairman, and all trading department employees have been granted a day off tomorrow. So tonight, you can drink as much as you want without worrying about work!"

"Woooahhh!"

"A day off?! You're not joking, right?!"

The cheer that erupted was even louder than when they heard the dinner menu.

For people who spent their days waking up early, staring at numbers, and battling through fierce market competition, even a single day of guilt-free rest felt like pure gold.

Seeing their joy, Seok-won smirked and, having said all he needed to, turned to leave the room.

"Man… Korean beef and a day off? That's a dream combo."

Yoo Seok-hyun's comment made Hong Jae-hee clap in agreement.

"Exactly! The director is the best!"

Jung Hwan-yeop, already salivating at the thought of Korean beef, licked his lips in anticipation.

"Convincing the Chairman to give us a day off—our Director really has some serious pull."

Then, he cast a sly glance at Team Leader Choi Ho-geun.

"Must be nice saving money on the team dinner tonight, huh?"

"I was planning to put it on the company card anyway."

"Come on, that's too much! A true leader should show some generosity and treat his team out of his own pocket!"

"What nonsense are you spouting?"

Choi Ho-geun confidently placed his hands on his hips and declared,

"Just wait until you get married and have kids. Your salary won't be yours anymore—it'll be your wife's. And besides, this is exactly what company cards are for."

"Phew, can't argue with that."

With a quick clap of his hands, Choi Ho-geun grabbed everyone's attention.

"Alright, listen up! If you want to get to dinner, wrap things up quickly!"

Hong Jae-hee clenched her tiny fists and shouted with enthusiasm,

"You heard the Team Leader! We need to get to our Korean beef, so hurry up and hand over those transaction reports!"

"Got it, got it."

"We need to be the first ones there! If we're late, the other teams might take all the good cuts!"

Fired up with a passion for Korean beef, Hong Jae-hee spurred the team into action. Even the usually laid-back Jung Hwan-yeop and Yoo Seok-hyun quickly got to work, tidying up their transaction records with newfound urgency.