Luckily, I immediately thought of someone who could help me.
"Hyun-joo noona is still in Korea, right?"
I knew she would be knowledgeable about derivative products from working at Golden Gate.
"She went back to Hong Kong a few days ago."
"Ah..."
Hyun-joo noona came to Korea for the BuyMart due diligence. It was natural for her to go back once the work was done.
"Should I ask her over the phone or email?"
I was about to nod, but paused.
"What will you say if she asks what you're relying on to trade futures options"
Taek-gyu confidently said.
"You should say you believe in Oracle Eye's foresight."
"..."
If she doesn't reject it and tear me apart when I unpack, I'll be lucky.
While thinking, I thought of someone suitable to ask.
"I know someone I can ask."
I dialed a number I knew, but it said it was an invalid number. I heard that the number had changed since she took a leave of absence, and I didn't have her new contact information.
There was a way to find out.
I called a senior who was the vice president of the club.
"Hello."
"Hey, Ho-young Senior. This is Jin-hoo from the Business Department..."
"Long time no see, Jin-hoo. How have you been? Discharged from the military?"
"Yes. I called to ask you something."
"What is it?"
"Do you know Sang-yeop Senior's contact information?"
"I don't know... Ah! Woo-hyun might know. Try contacting Woo-hyun."
"Alright."
"When are you returning to school? I need to see your face sometime."
"Yes. I will contact you later."
After several attempts of calling club members, I finally managed to find Sang-yeop Senior's contact information.
I called again.
Ring! Click!
"Hello."
Luckily, the call connected.
I quickly spoke.
"Is this Sang-yeop Senior's phone?"
"Yes, who is this?"
"I'm Jin-hoo from the Business Department."
Sang-yeop Senior greeted me warmly.
"Jin-hoo! Long time no see."
"Have you been doing well?"
"I've been managing. But what's the matter?"
"I'll tell you when we meet. Are you available?"
"Where are you coming from? I'm in Suwon these days. Can you come here?"
"Should I come now?"
"I can't now, but after 10 p.m. it would be fine."
"Alright. I will come at the agreed time."
After hanging up the phone, Taek-gyu asked, "Who was that?"
"Park Sang-yeop, the former president of the Investment Club."
"What kind of person is he?"
I chuckled and replied, "He's totally a mess."
I added a comment, "But also a genius."
There are two types of geniuses in the world – those who excel in multiple areas and those who excel in only one field.
Sang-yeop Senior belonged to the latter category.
---
The Investment Club.
Also known as the Fail Club.
When I joined the club, Sang-yeop Senior was the club president.
He had won several international math competitions as a child, which allowed him to enter a prestigious math department in Korea.
Growing up in Australia, he had a decent command of English, but except for math and English, his grades in other subjects were abysmal.
He mentioned that without his math accolades, it would have been difficult for him to attend even a regional university.
His performance in other subjects was barely passing. However, when it came to math, he was unbeatable.
One time, as a freshman, he secretly attended a fourth-year class, got hooked on a problem the professor presented, and spent three days and nights solving it. This incident became famous within the school.
By chance, he joined the Investment Club and became fascinated with the stock market while participating in simulated trading.
One day, he noticed a small company listed on the KOSDAQ called MK Tech.
For some reason, he predicted that the stock would skyrocket by more than ten times. But he didn't have enough money to invest.
No matter how certain he was of its rise, it would be useless if he didn't have any money to spare.
Deciding not to miss the opportunity, Sang-yeop Senior immediately withdrew the 5 million won deposit he had for his accommodation and used it to buy all MK Tech shares.
Cutting back on living expenses and moving between friends' homes, he waited for the stocks to rise.
Surprisingly, within a fortnight of buying them, MK Tech started to hit daily limit up prices. The stock that had been in the doldrums for years rose by 10 times in just two months.
When the stock reached the expected 10-fold increase, Sang-yeop Senior quickly sold the shares.
In less than a month, the 5 million won he invested had grown to 50 million won.
This was just the beginning. Following his success with the first investment, Sang-yeop Senior delved into corporate analysis, putting aside lectures and grades.
Although he occasionally suffered losses, he promptly cut losses according to his principles and moved to other stocks.
Consistently making profits, by the time I joined the club, Sang-yeop Senior's investment had surpassed 300 million won.
300 million won is a fortune that ordinary university students wouldn't even dare dream of touching. If he was an ordinary person, he might have been satisfied with this amount.
But Sang-yeop Senior felt it was insufficient. Above all, he felt regret about his initial investment size.
If his initial investment had been 100 million won, he would have made 6 billion won. But his initial investment was only a meager 5 million won, so he could only earn just over 300 million won(?).
He started to shift his focus towards achieving higher profits.
Sang-yeop Senior turned his attention to the potential for higher returns.
From then on, he accumulated dozens of books, made simulated investments, and studied and analyzed the options market. When he gained some confidence, a stock caught his eye.
CL Chemical, a member of the CL Group, is a conglomerate with high-level technology in basic materials and batteries.
Sang-yeop Senior believed that CL Chemical's price was significantly undervalued and predicted that it would more than double in the future.
So he cashed out all his shares and bought call options on CL Chemicals.
When Sang-yeop Senior bought the options, CL Chemical's stock price was around 200,000 won, but within a few days, something unexpected happened.
An employee in charge fell victim to an email phishing scam and mistakenly transferred the payment to a fake account. The company lost $27 million.
At the time, this amounted to 20 percent of CL Chemical's quarterly operating income.
Due to the unexpected bad news, the stock price of 200,000 won dropped to 170,000 won, and the value of the call options purchased plummeted in an instant.
Instead of closing the position, Sang-yeop Senior chose to take a risk. He bought more options.
He took out a loan from a lender at the highest legal interest rate. He used the money to buy another call option.
However, by the expiration date, CL Chemical's stock price had not recovered, and his investment of more than 300 million won was reduced to zero.
When the date passed and the loan was not repaid, the lender began to harass him.
Men in black suits came to the club room from time to time. It was illegal collection, but there was nothing he could do about it.
Eventually, Sang-yeop Senior dropped out of school and disappeared.
At that point, my family situation became difficult, I enlisted in the army, and we naturally lost contact, and I haven't heard from him since.
"Eventually, CL Chem started to gain attention in the battery field and went up to over 500,000 won, but------ that was a long time ago."
If he had bought spot shares instead of options, the 300 million would have turned into 700 million. But he didn't make a penny on options.
When Taek-gyufinished, he stuck his tongue out.
"He started with five million won, made 300 million, and ended up in debt? What a life he's had."
"That's true."
How would he live now?
Translated with DeepL.com (free version)
***
We were sitting across from each other with a grill in between.
Taek-gyu, looking at the menu, opened his mouth in shock.
"Wow! 40,000 won per serving..."
People are always amazed by things they rarely experience, especially when someone else is paying.
"I'll order."
I snatched the menu and promptly ordered three servings of sirloin.
Sang-yeop Senior awkwardly smiled.
"I'm sorry, but I'm in a bit of a predicament..."
I said while gesturing towards Taek-gyu.
"He's going to pay."
---
We watched as the meat on the grill emitted a savory aroma and cooked to perfection.
Sang-yeop Senior picked up a piece of lightly cooked sirloin and tasted it.
"Wow! It's been a while since I had beef."
I also felt the same way.
Eating pasta dishes at home every day, having a healthy piece of meat did feel like a luxury. It was a moment when I realized how humans had evolved to consume meat through hunting.
"How have you been since taking a leave of absence?"
"I did odd jobs for a while. I did some manual labor and worked as a substitute driver. Now I'm living off a friend and teaching students at a cram school."
"Math?"
Sang-yeop Senior let out a wry smile.
"As you know, I'm not skilled enough to teach other subjects. Sweating to earn money made me realize how precious even a 100 won coin is."
"Senior, you've changed a lot."
"When my stocks were doing well, I made hundreds of thousands in a single day. As I earned more, I spent like no tomorrow. I realized how fleeting money was, just like water."
Steak was quickly devoured. I ordered two more servings. Indeed, meat tasted the best when someone else treated you to it.
"Profit!"
As the meat sizzled on the grill, Sang-yeop Senior asked, "Why did you want to meet?"
"Just wanted to see you. And I have a few things to ask."
"What is it?"
"I want to learn more about gift options."
"If you want to open a gift options trading account, you need to complete training, and a deposit is required."
"That's not a problem."
OTK Company is a corporate account.
It's already set up to conduct all types of trades.