The Conglomerate Family Became A Villain [EN]: Chapter 239

239. Beyond the Cold War (2)

December 13th.

Wall Street dealers were stunned, their mouths agape.

“This really isn’t good.”

“Will we be okay?”

“Hmm, I don’t know.”

The reason for their apprehension was that the yen’s value had reached its highest point since the Plaza Accord [a 1985 agreement among major economies to depreciate the U.S. dollar].

“To think it would appreciate over 50% compared to last year.”

“It’s like oil, not currency.”

Because various World Bank data were recorded in dollars, Japan’s economic indicators showed a growth rate of nearly 70%.

This was unprecedented, except for a few oil-producing countries.

“The Japanese have seen their annual salaries increase by 50% even while doing nothing.”

“That’s only when calculated in dollars; their actual lives probably haven’t changed that much, right?”

In December 1986, as the bubble economy [an economic bubble in Japan from 1986 to 1991] was heading towards its peak, the lives of the Japanese people were also changing in many ways.

Consumption exploded, and expensive imported products filled stores due to the greatly increased value of the yen.

The neon signs on the streets stayed lit until dawn, and companies were doing unbelievable things, such as sending new employees on training programs to Hawaii upon joining the company to prevent them from moving to other companies that offered higher salaries.

And that afternoon, Bank of America officially announced that it would invest in Japan.

Naturally, the yen rose even more significantly.

“Game over.”

John Pierre picked up the phone as soon as the stock market closed. Then, he called Jung Hyun-woo.

“This is Charlie.”

Jung Hyun-woo’s voice was the same as ever.

A calm, low tone.

It felt like he was looking at the monitor screen on his desk while talking on the phone.

“Charlie, didn’t you check the stock price today?”

Jung Hyun-woo answered his question calmly.

“The executive meeting just ended. I didn’t have time to check the stock price.”

John Pierre raised his voice.

“Oh, my God. Charlie! You held an executive meeting on a day like this?”

Jung Hyun-woo frowned at his question.

“Was there a reason to cancel today’s executive meeting?”

Today might have been a special day for John Pierre, but it was just an ordinary day for Jung Hyun-woo.

John Pierre exclaimed as if making a grand announcement.

“Charlie! Victoria Corporation’s stock price has finally surpassed IBM!”

Victoria Corporation’s rise to the top in market capitalization.

Jung Hyun-woo blinked in disbelief.

“What did you just say?”

“Victoria Corporation has risen to the top in the world. Now, the world’s number one company in market capitalization is Victoria Corporation.”

World number one.

Victoria Corporation had become the world’s number one company, even if only for a day.

Jung Hyun-woo couldn’t believe it even after hearing his answer.

“Is that really true?”

John Pierre added an explanation.

“Victoria Corporation closed today at $48.9, recording a market capitalization of $97.8 billion.”

IBM’s market capitalization fell below $100 billion due to poor performance in the last quarter, giving Victoria Corporation the world number one spot.

Jung Hyun-woo was speechless.

“Unbelievable. World number one…”

Victoria Corporation hadn’t announced anything significant this year.

The only thing was opening Western Services for western banks with stock quote service.

Nevertheless, the stock price soared like a rocket, and on December 13th, it finally caught up with IBM.

“What’s the reason?”

At Jung Hyun-woo’s question, John Pierre puffed out his chest and answered.

“If you’re looking for a concrete reason, it would be the sharp rise in the yen.”

“You mean it’s because of Victoria Fund’s rate of return.”

“Everyone knows it. The insane rate of return of Victoria Fund.”

Insane rate of return.

How high did it have to be to warrant such a description?

‘It did exceed 300% this year alone.’

Jung Hyun-woo carefully checked the profits of Victoria Fund.

“John, around what level do you think this year’s profit will be finalized?”

Victoria Fund first invested in Japan in January, so it could be said that it operated throughout 1986.

The rate of return of Victoria Fund, which operated for a full year.

John Pierre answered his question.

“In terms of amount, it’s about $21 billion.”

Jung Hyun-woo doubted his ears.

“John, not $15 billion, but $21 billion?”

John Pierre lowered his voice and answered.

“The value of the yen has risen sharply in the past month. Of course, the profit I mentioned is the total profit, not the net profit excluding expenses.”

“Even excluding expenses…”

“It would be at least $20 billion.”

Victoria Fund’s initial investment was only $3 billion.

‘So, does that mean Victoria Fund’s rate of return this year is over 650%?’

It was Victoria Fund’s profit, not the company’s sales, that drove up Victoria Corporation’s stock price.

‘Hoo… In a way, it’s a bittersweet achievement.’

It was when Jung Hyun-woo was taking a long sigh internally.

John Pierre said in a bright voice.

“Charlie, we might be able to achieve a 700% rate of return by the end of the year.”

“You mean it’s going to rise even more from here?”

“Because the Santa Rally [a surge in the stock market during the last five trading days of December and the first two of January] is continuing.”

The Santa Rally didn’t always come in December. However, every December, the Santa Rally started with a fairly high probability.

This year’s Santa Rally had already begun, and Victoria Corporation was benefiting greatly from it.

‘Even if it rises only 10% more with the Santa Rally…’

Victoria Corporation’s market capitalization could break through the dream of $100 billion.

‘$100 billion?’

If Victoria Corporation’s market capitalization reaches $100 billion, his assets will exceed $50 billion.

“Charlie, congratulations.”

Jung Hyun-woo tilted his head at the unexpected congratulatory remarks.

“Is there anything else to congratulate besides being the number one in market capitalization?”

John Pierre answered in a soft voice.

“Charlie’s face will grace the cover of Forbes next year.”

Jung Hyun-woo groaned softly at his answer.

“Umm, as the CEO of the world’s number one company in market capitalization?”

John Pierre shook his head.

“No. Charlie will grace the cover of Forbes as the world’s number one richest man.”

The largest shareholder of the world’s number one company in market capitalization.

Except in special cases, it was common for the person in that position to become the world’s number one richest person.

“Am I really the world’s number one?”

“If not Charlie, who else could be the world’s number one? Didn’t you push out IBM too?”

Until last month, Jung Hyun-woo’s ranking among American tycoons was third.

In other words, Jung Hyun-woo had surpassed the two people in front of him in just one month.

‘Huh… Unbelievable.’

He expected something dynamic to happen when he became the world’s number one richest man.

But becoming the world’s number one in market capitalization and the world’s number one richest man came too blandly.

‘Flat cola would be more exciting than this.’

It was when Jung Hyun-woo frowned.

John Pierre added as if supplementing.

“Please also convey my congratulations to Miss Hilton.”

Jung Hyun-woo raised the end of his sentence.

“Is there something for Sarah too?”

“Miss Hilton has risen to the top of the list of richest women in America. Maybe a couple shot of the two of you will grace the cover of Forbes.”

Jung Hyun-woo exclaimed briefly in his mind.

‘Ha! Now I really have no choice but to move.’

Living quietly in downtown Boston was now impossible.

“John, there’s a lot of news today.”

“Charlie, you’re surprisingly calm.”

Jung Hyun-woo addressed John Pierre’s comment.

“Calm, you say. To be honest, things like being the world’s number one that John mentioned don’t excite me that much. Rather, organizing the contents of the meeting that just ended is more pressing, you could say.”

John Pierre listened to his explanation and nodded as if understanding.

“Charlie is indeed a CEO.”

At one time, he thought Jung Hyun-woo was more suited to be a Wall Street investor than a CEO.

But through today’s call, he could be sure. Jung Hyun-woo was more of a CEO than an investor.

He was the type of talent who designs projects, executes them, and rejoices at the results.

‘That means he’s not the type of person who rejoices at seeing red arrows on the electronic display board [indicating falling stock prices].’

Jung Hyun-woo responded to John Pierre’s words.

“I’ll take that last remark as a compliment.”

John Pierre raised his tone of voice.

“Charlie, don’t misunderstand. That was a 100% pure compliment.”

Jung Hyun-woo nodded and said.

“I understand. John, please contact me if there are any more developments in the future.”

“Charlie, Merry Christmas, although it’s a bit early.”

Click.

As soon as John Pierre hung up, the man who had been waiting straightened his shoulders.

“Isn’t it very early, not just a little?”

Christmas was more than ten days away.

“Jeremy, when did you get here?”

“A little while ago.”

“Without knocking?”

“I did knock.”

Jeremy Spin, formerly of Morgan Stanley, was in charge of Victoria Fund’s finances.

“Did you?”

“You were having too much fun on the phone.”

John Pierre smiled and said.

“Because the client achieved the world’s number one ranking.”

Jeremy Spin said coldly.

“I thought you had become the world’s number one richest man.”

John Pierre chuckled and responded.

“Come on, sit down. Don’t just stand there.”

It was all thanks to him that Victoria Fund was managing its funds smoothly.

It’s a cliché, but John Pierre sometimes described him as a magician of management.

“John, you exchanged $100 million today.”

John Pierre could see why Jeremy Spin’s expression wasn’t good.

“You think I bought the yen too expensively.”

Jeremy Spin nodded.

“Did you really have to exchange the yen in this super-surge situation?”

He thought that this exchange had resulted in a loss of as much as $10 million and as little as $2 or $3 million.

‘$2 million is enough money to buy a luxury apartment in New York.’

Jeremy Spin predicted that he could have saved a considerable amount of money if he had waited just a few days.

“Jeremy, isn’t it because we exchanged today that the final graph looked so impressive?”

Jeremy Spin raised his eyebrows at John Pierre’s answer.

“You, you…”

“That’s right, I told you to exchange $100 million because I wanted to make Victoria Corporation’s stock price the world’s number one.”

It could be said that John Pierre orchestrated today’s sharp rise in the yen.

“I’ll exchange another $100 million tomorrow.”

Jeremy Spin sighed deeply.

“Hoo… I feel like I’m building a sandcastle in front of the waves.”

What came to his mind was the potential collapse of Victoria Corporation’s stock price.

“Don’t be so pessimistic.”

“If you don’t keep adding fuel to the fire, the yen appreciation will soon burn out.”

“That’s not going to happen.”

Jeremy Spin frowned.

“It’s not going to happen?”

John Pierre nodded and answered.

“Because the dividend season is coming soon.”

Dividend season and yen appreciation.

Jeremy Spin could predict to some extent what John Pierre was aiming for.

However, he couldn’t believe that it would go his way.

‘There are too many variables.’

He was dissatisfied that risk management was not being properly managed.

“How about taking some money out?”

“You mean securing cash?”

“Securing reserves is the basis of investment.”

At other times, John Pierre would have agreed with his words. But not today.

“Let’s go all in.”

“John.”

“It’s an investment that can’t be stopped.”

Jeremy Spin frowned.

“If the bubble bursts, it will all be lost.”

John Pierre turned his chair around and addressed his concern.

“If Charlie’s luck holds, he’ll get out of the bubble safely.”

“Luck?”

John Pierre stopped the chair and answered.

“It’s not just skill that got Charlie here.”

If he only had natural talent, he could have made his company a top-tier company.

But becoming the world’s number one company was another story. He thought that luck was on Jung Hyun-woo’s side.

‘Luck is like the wind. If you try to resist it, you’ll face a strong headwind.’

He sneered as he recalled the Damon Perrman’s emergency arrest article he had read yesterday.

* * *

Number one in market capitalization.

Of course, it didn’t last long.

Victoria Corporation relinquished the number one spot to IBM on December 21st.

Nevertheless, Jung Hyun-woo maintained his position as the number one richest man in America.

This was because the gap with IBM was not large.

“Isn’t that outfit a bit much?”

Jung Hyun-woo questioned Sarah’s party attire.

“Is it too much?”

Sarah was wearing a silver dress, which was a modified version of the Chinese cheongsam [a traditional Chinese dress], so the side was slit high.

“It’s a bit much.”

“It’s just for one day.”

The two were heading to Senator Jack Edinburgh’s fundraiser.

Senator Jack Edinburgh was unable to become the Republican leader, but he was able to solidify his position by taking key positions within the Republican Party.

“Still, everyone will only look at Sarah, right?”

“Are you jealous?”

Jung Hyun-woo turned his gaze out the window and answered.

“You’re America’s most admired woman.”

“Hoo, do you really think so?”

“Among the world’s wealthy, is there anyone as beautiful as Sarah?”

There may be people with more money than Sarah, but it was true that there was no one with the same beauty as her.

“You’re praising me a lot today.”

“I’m just telling the truth.”

Sarah said, fixing her hair.

“So. Are you going to settle it today?”

Settle.

The settlement she was talking about was about Tetris [likely referring to a business deal or negotiation related to the Tetris video game].

“I want to settle it if possible.”

“Charlie is now the world’s number one richest man, so it’s okay to stop being greedy.”

Jung Hyun-woo responded without turning his head.

“The world’s number one richest man sitting next to you is standing on a bubble.”

If the bubble in Japan bursts, his assets will also decrease.

“Then just get out before that happens.”

“There’s a saying in our country.”

“What saying is it?”

“It’s like riding a tiger’s back [meaning a dangerous situation where one cannot easily stop].”

“Like riding a tiger’s back?”

Jung Hyun-woo turned his head to Sarah and answered.

“It means it’s a very dangerous situation, but you can’t stop.”

“You mean you can’t withdraw the money you invested in Japan all at once?”

“It’s similar to that.”

Sarah stopped the hand that was touching her hair and said.

“There’s nothing as foolish as walking while knowing it’s dangerous.”

Jung Hyun-woo raised the end of his sentence.

“What if the place you’re walking is on a frozen lake?”

“You mean you can’t stop walking until you reach the other side?”

“That’s right.”

Sarah took her hand off her hair and asked.

“You seem so calm for someone in that situation?”

The reason Jung Hyun-woo could be calm was because he knew the future.

“I’m thinking of it as fate.”

“Success is fate, failure is fate?”

“If I didn’t think that way, I wouldn’t be able to sleep properly because I’d be so anxious, right?”

“Well…”

Sarah knew how big the burden on his shoulders was.

‘Being the world’s number one in market capitalization is not just a title.’

In order not to be crushed by the weight of the crown, as they say, you had to be very alert.

“Is Sarah okay?”

At Jung Hyun-woo’s question, Sarah tilted her head to the side.

“Me?”

“You’re the world’s number one richest woman, and you’ve also been chosen as the most attractive woman in the world.”

Sarah had actually been chosen as the most attractive woman in a poll of 1,000 American men.

“That’s just gossip.”

“Gossip? No, it’s not. Everyone’s eyes get this big when they see Sarah.”

Jung Hyun-woo widened his eyes with both hands while speaking.

“Charlie, isn’t that too dangerous a gesture?”

Jung Hyun-woo lowered his hands and said.

“Wasn’t it different from that racist gesture?”

“It’s different, but depending on who’s looking at it, it could be interpreted the same way.”

Jung Hyun-woo sighed briefly.

“Hoo… Now that I’ve become the world’s number one, you’re saying I have to be careful about what I say and do?”

Sarah nodded and answered.

“Now, even picking up a piece of trash that falls on the floor can become news.”

Her answer was not a joke.

Since becoming the world’s number one richest man, paparazzi had begun to follow him and her.

“We need to move soon.”

After the shopping mall incident, the two were realizing that the atmosphere around them was different from before.

“Let’s sign the contract before Christmas.”

Sarah wanted to finish moving by January of next year.