After the banquet, I returned home.
I pulled the bankbook from my pocket and tucked it away in the safe hidden behind my desk.
Inside, ten other bankbooks from various banks were already neatly stacked.
One from my first birthday celebration.
One for starting elementary school, and another for graduating from it.
This one? A reward for ranking first in my entire grade.
Adding them all up, my total balance came to roughly 7 billion won.
In my past life, I had blown through all this money the moment I entered university, spending it like water.
And yet, Grandpa had been delighted.
"A man should know how to spend when it's time to spend," he had said.
He trusted that I wouldn't make reckless mistakes.
Not to brag, but I had never lost my spot as the top student from elementary through high school.
And in the end, I got into Korea's most prestigious university with an outstanding academic record.
"Now… what should I do with this? Should I invest?"
It's not like I was strapped for cash.
As the only grandson and the only heir of a wealthy family—what financial troubles could I possibly have?
But this wasn't about spending for myself.
I needed a massive amount of capital to prevent the disaster that was coming.
During Taewoo Group's collapse, its total liabilities amounted to a staggering 89 trillion won.
Of course, that number had been inflated by the betrayal of executives and the government's manipulations.
Still, even without the exaggeration, Taewoo Group had been shouldering an immense amount of debt.
I needed more than just money.
To sever the ties between rival corporations and the government, I had to gather loyal allies.
And for that, I needed both wealth and connections.
First things first—money.
Even building connections required financial backing.
Fortunately, I knew the future.
And information was money.
Turning a small initial investment into a fortune was the easiest part.
The real issue?
My age.
I was only 17.
A high school student moving large sums of money would attract attention.
I needed someone capable—someone who could turn my knowledge into wealth on my behalf.
Taewoo Group owned more than 40 subsidiaries.
Construction, automobiles, petrochemicals, and even finance.
Grandpa, who emphasized the importance of finance, had established Taewoo Securities over 20 years ago.
With its long history, it had grown into a financial giant.
It was among the top three most desirable financial firms to work for, attracting only the elite of the elite.
And here I was, sitting quietly in front of Taewoo Securities.
"Sir, it's quite cold outside, and you've already missed mealtime," one of the secretaries urged.
"Just wait a little longer. Can't the chairman's grandson even admire his own family's company?"
"If you fall ill, we'll be severely reprimanded…"
"I said, just a little longer. I promise it won't take long."
I had repeated that phrase over five times now.
Each time, the secretary's face grew paler.
Ignoring their increasingly desperate expressions, I focused on the employees passing through the entrance of Taewoo Securities.
'Oh! An A-grade investment skill? It's been a while since I've seen one of those.'
I quickly jotted down the employee's name in my notebook.
Soon, the names in this notebook would form my personal investment team.
I hadn't received Grandfather's approval yet, but would he really refuse a request from his adorable grandson?
As expected, Taewoo Securities was filled with exceptional talent.
Before I knew it, I had already filled my notebook with names of A-grade professionals.
Investment skills, analytical abilities, crisis management…
However, I hadn't found someone fit to lead them yet.
I needed not an A-grade, but an S-grade talent for the team leader.
But S-grade abilities were incredibly rare.
In fact, I had only ever seen one person with such a rating.
My grandfather.
The man who raised Taewoo Group to rank among the top three conglomerates in Korea.
Expecting to find someone on his level was probably wishful thinking.
Still, if my memory was correct, there was one exceptional individual among Taewoo Securities' employees.
Had he not joined the company yet?
Just as I was about to leave—partly because the secretaries looked like they were about to pass out—I finally spotted him.
The one person I had been searching for.
And the name matched exactly with the one I had in mind.
[Personal Profile]
Name: Hwang Jung-han
Age: 29
Department: Overseas Stock Investment Division (Assistant Manager)
Notable Information: Looking to resign.
Skills: Analytical Ability – S Grade
Hwang Jung-han.
A man who, in just ten years, would become the CEO of a renowned investment firm.
And the one who would later acquire Taewoo Securities, transforming it into a massive financial powerhouse.
He was a legendary investor, known for his flawless data analysis and ability to craft the most profitable portfolios.
A man who would eventually handle transactions worth trillions.
And now, he was right in front of me.
At the moment, he was just an assistant manager, and he was already considering resigning.
To recruit him, I had been squatting in front of this building for over three hours.
As soon as Hwang Jung-han stepped out of the company entrance, he instinctively reached for a cigarette.
Judging by the dark circles that had taken over his entire face, his life was clearly a stressful mess.
Wanting to offer him a glimmer of hope, I quickly moved toward him.
"Rough day?"
He glanced at me, surprised.
"A student? What are you doing here? Some kind of field trip? Damn, even a kid like you can tell I want to quit? Listen, just study hard and become a judge or a doctor. Being a so-called 'stockbroker' is nothing but glorified manual labor."
"Just hold on a little longer. A great opportunity is coming your way."
"…Well, thanks for the kind words, kid. But this is no place for you. The cigarette smoke stinks. If you're here for a tour, go ask at the front desk on the first floor."
Hwang Jung-han was already half-broken.
If he quit today, things would get complicated.
I had to snatch up this talent before it was too late.
Without hesitation, I headed straight to Grandfather.
***
Grandpa had no real hobbies.
He used to joke that work was his only pastime—the very definition of a workaholic.
But I knew the truth.
His only true hobby… was me.
Even now, whenever I appeared, he would stop whatever he was doing and pull me into a hug.
"My dear Min-jae! What brings you here? You always say my study smells like old books and avoid it."
"Grandpa, I have a favor to ask."
"My little pup wants something? Of course! What is it? A toy? A game console?"
"I want to start studying finance seriously."
"So that's why you visited Taewoo Securities today? Hmm… Well, you're about to start high school soon. It's a good time to begin learning about finance."
All of my activities were reported to Grandpa.
In my past life, I saw it as surveillance.
Now, I understood—it was simply his way of protecting his only grandson.
"With the allowance you gave me, I want to start investing."
"Well, aren't you ambitious? Do you want me to buy you some stocks?"
"No, I want to lead the investments myself. I'd like to form my own dedicated investment team."
"…A personal investment team?"
Grandpa chuckled, amused.
This 17-year-old was talking about forming an entire financial task force.
In an ordinary household, this conversation might have been taken as a joke.
But our family was far from ordinary.
In fact, this was common in chaebol families.
There's a reason so many middle and high school students appear on the list of Korea's top 100 stockholders.
For the wealthy, opening a stock account for their children and teaching them finance from a young age was just part of their education.
"So, you want to have some employees work under you?"
"Yes. I've already selected a few. I want to invest alongside the employees listed here."
"Looks like you've put together a plan already. Alright, go ahead and try. But there's a condition. Even as chairman, I can't just assign employees to you without their consent. If any of them don't want to work with you, they'll return to Taewoo Securities."
"Don't worry about that. I'm confident they'll stay!"
Grandpa looked at me with a pleased expression.
Still, there was no overwhelming expectation in his eyes.
He probably just hoped I would learn something valuable from this investment.
"Well, if you're going to invest, you should do it properly. Wait here a moment."
Grandpa opened the safe beneath his desk.
Inside, there were gold bars, bonds, and bankbooks stacked neatly.
He took out one of the bankbooks and placed it in my hand.
"There's 1 billion won in this account. Add it to your allowance and use it for your investments."
"Grandpa, thank you so much!"
I gave him a quick peck on the cheek.
1 billion won and a kiss on the cheek.
A perfect deal—showing my love while securing funds.
* * *
The next day, the four Taewoo Securities employees I had selected arrived at my house.
Judging by their expressions, they weren't exactly thrilled.
They probably thought they were just babysitting the chairman's grandson in his little investment game.
"Hello, I'm Kim Min-jae."
"Ah, y-yes. Nice to meet you. I'm Hwang Jung-han, assistant manager at Taewoo Securities."
Hwang Jung-han was the most senior among them.
I had intentionally built my team with younger employees who had only been with the company for a short time.
I couldn't pull in managers or higher-ups so suddenly, and the higher their rank, the harder it would be to control them.
That's why I had mostly chosen assistant managers and junior employees, all in their mid-to-late twenties.
"Everyone, please have a seat. Auntie, could you bring some refreshments?"
Soon, orange juice and cookies were neatly arranged on the table.
The four employees were clearly distracted, their eyes wandering around the lavish mansion.
How should I win them over?
First and foremost, I needed to ensure they didn't see me as just some rich kid playing around with money.
"I'm planning to start investing, and I'd like your help."
"We'll do our best, though we may not be much."
"Then, can I start with a question?"
"Of course."
"Where should I invest right now to make the most money?"
The four securities firm employees exchanged glances.
They were probably struggling to figure out how to explain things in a way I could understand.
"You could invest in real estate or put money into electronics companies for stable returns."
"What about riskier investments?"
"In that case, investing in emerging markets might be an option."
The four employees still looked uncomfortable in this unfamiliar situation.
But I had already chosen a topic that would break the tension instantly.
"I want to invest in the Japanese market."
"The Japanese market is overvalued right now. You could suffer significant losses."
"When you say 'overvalued,' you mean it's like a balloon or a bubble—inflated beyond its true worth, right?"
"Yes, like a ticking time bomb. It might never explode, but if it does, the impact will be huge."
"What if that bomb explodes this March?"
"…What do you mean by that?"
"There's talk that the Japanese government is planning to implement a loan cap policy."
Since the 1980s, Japan's bubble economy had been expanding.
At this point, 8 out of the world's top 10 companies were Japanese.
But soon, Japan would enter its 'Lost Decade'.
And the loan cap policy would be the trigger.
In a matter of months—a year at most—Japan's stock market would be halved.
Real estate would collapse, and bankruptcies would flood the economy as people and companies failed to repay loans.
"So, Master Min-jae, you're saying that you want to invest under the assumption that Japan's economy will crash after March? That's an extremely risky approach."
"But Assistant Manager Hwang, didn't you say Japan's economy is overvalued?"
"Well… yes, but…"
Hwang Jung-han turned his head away, seemingly hoping for support from his colleagues.
But the reactions he got were completely unexpected.
"If the Japanese government really enforces a loan cap, the bubble might burst."
"They've already raised interest rates four times last year, from 2.5% to 3.25%."
"If they add a loan cap on top of that, the bubble will pop for sure."
"Had they done this 2-3 years ago, it might have been different, but doing it now is like pushing the detonator."
These were the answers I was hoping for.
As expected from A-tier professionals.
Of course, it was also possible that they were saying what I wanted to hear just to win favor with me.
"In that case, let's assume the Japanese economic bubble bursts and strategize our investments accordingly."
"To create a proper investment strategy, we need to know exactly how much capital we're working with."
"Around 22 billion won. And it's all in U.S. dollars."
"...22 billion won?!"
TL/n -
In the 1980s, Japan implemented various financial policies to control excessive lending and manage economic growth. One of the key measures was the window guidance (マル優制度) policy by the Bank of Japan (BOJ), which placed informal loan caps on commercial banks to restrict excessive credit expansion. This policy aimed to prevent overheating in asset markets, especially real estate and stocks.
Key Aspects of Japan's Loan Cap Policy in the 1980s:
1. Window Guidance (Madoguchi Shidō, 窓口指導):
The BOJ informally set credit quotas for banks, limiting the total amount of loans they could extend, especially to speculative sectors.
This was meant to control inflation and avoid asset bubbles.
2. Financial Deregulation & Bubble Economy (Late 1980s):
Despite earlier restrictions, Japan gradually liberalized its financial markets, leading to massive speculative lending, especially in real estate.
Banks increased lending beyond sustainable levels, fueling the Japanese asset price bubble (1986–1991).
3. Plaza Accord (1985) & Yen Appreciation:
The agreement led to a sharp appreciation of the yen, pushing Japan to adopt monetary easing to support exports.
This resulted in low interest rates, further encouraging excessive borrowing.
4. Late 1980s Shift – Loosening of Credit Controls:
The BOJ relaxed loan restrictions, leading to aggressive lending by financial institutions.
Many loans were directed toward real estate and stock market speculation, worsening the asset bubble.
By the early 1990s, the bursting of the bubble led to a financial crisis and Japan's "Lost Decade," characterized by bad loans, economic stagnation, and deflation.