NOVEL NEXT WORLD 52
“So, this information is reliable, right?”
In the Yuseong Group chairman’s office.
The chairman spoke into the phone, still sounding skeptical.
-Oh, come on, Hyung. Who do you think I am?
The person on the other end was Seo Gihwan, chairman of Gwangjin Group. He chuckled as he spoke.
-Don’t you know how good I am with stocks?
“I do. That you’re the best among us when it comes to stocks.”
Even among chaebol chairmen, Seo Gihwan was known as the “God of Stocks.”
The chairman had never bought stocks based on his recommendations, but he’d often heard from other company chairmen that they’d made money thanks to Seo Gihwan.
-Hyung, don’t worry. It’ll go up twice, no, more than ten times.
“You’re that certain?”
-Yes. I’ve never been this confident when recommending stocks to other chairmen.
“As I said, I’ve invested money I can’t afford to lose.”
-Hyung, you’re so good at management, but don’t you know that investment always comes with risks? It’s not like you’re secretly using company money.
Of course, he wasn’t using company funds or doing anything illegal.
“Didn’t I tell you?”
-Anyway, don’t worry! Just wait for the good news.
Knock knock-
At the sound of knocking, the chairman’s gaze shifted to the office door. A moment later, the door opened and his secretary entered.
“What is it?”
The chairman asked, covering the receiver with his hand.
“Yuseong Investment Securities President Lee Gyeongchae, who had an appointment, has arrived.”
The secretary bowed apologetically, and the chairman looked at the watch on his wrist.
“Oh my, is it that time already? Tell him to come in.”
The chairman put the phone back to his ear.
“Let’s meet on the field next week.”
-Yes, Hyung. By then, there’ll be good news. Be ready to treat us.
“Good grief. I really can’t beat your smooth talk.”
The chairman smiled, seeming to be in a good mood.
-Take care.
“Alright. See you later.”
As the chairman hung up, his appointment partners entered the room.
“Chairman, how are you?”
“Ah, President Lee. Come in. Who’s this today?”
The chairman spoke to the Yuseong Securities president.
“Today, it’s Vice President Sim Ju-won from the WM Division.”
The president had already brought vice presidents from other divisions to report here over the past week.
“Is this the last one?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
The chairman gestured for them to sit, and the two took their seats.
As soon as they sat down, the chairman looked at Sim Ju-won as if he were in a hurry.
“So. How do you view M-Biogen? It’s a good company, isn’t it?”
The chairman asked as if the answer was already decided, despite having given the assignment himself.
Sim Ju-won began to hesitate internally as he observed the chairman’s expression.
He wondered if it was right to present the prepared answer to a chairman who already had a desired response in mind.
“Why no answer?”
At the chairman’s question, the president looked at Sim Ju-won with an anxious expression.
After a moment’s consideration, Sim Ju-won seemed to make up his mind and spoke, looking at the chairman.
“I believe it’s a company not worth investing in.”
Sim Ju-won didn’t hesitate.
Of course, he knew M-Biogen was a good company. But as a securities professional and former PB, he couldn’t recommend such a stock to clients.
He couldn’t give the answer the chairman wanted for a stock he wouldn’t recommend to clients. If he were going to do that, he would have brought a different report.
“What?”
“Here’s the prepared report.”
The chairman looked at Sim Ju-won, seemingly surprised.
Then, collecting himself, he spoke.
“Look here, Vice President Sim.”
“Yes, Chairman.”
“I know you well. I hear you’re highly respected within the securities industry? And everyone says Sim Ju-won will be the next president.”
“……”
“That’s why I had the highest expectations for the report you’d bring.”
The chairman read through the report Sim Ju-won had brought with a stern expression.
Thud-
Tossing the report onto the table, the chairman looked at Sim Ju-won.
“Is this opposition for the sake of opposition?”
The chairman spoke, looking at Sim Ju-won as if displeased with the report’s conclusion.
“Not at all.”
“The report says it’s a good company, but not worth investing in.”
“It’s a company that looks promising, but if I had to recommend it to someone, I wouldn’t.”
Sim Ju-won continued speaking, facing the chairman who was staring at him intently.
“A securities firm employee should invest in stocks, not gamble.”
“Even if the person you need to recommend to is me?”
The chairman opened his mouth towards Sim Ju-won with a hardened expression.
“Vice President Sim, do you know how much money I’ve poured into this?”
“……”
“50 billion won. A whole 50 billion won.”
While he hadn’t thought the scale would be small, the chairman had invested a larger sum than expected in M-Biogen.
“And yet, you say it’s not worth investing in front of me?”
It was the most difficult situation.
It was always challenging to tell someone who had invested in a company that it wasn’t worth investing in.
Keeping one’s mouth shut might be the best option if possible, but that wasn’t an option now.
“I am a securities firm employee. I cannot buy stocks with client money or company money that I wouldn’t buy with my own money.”
Though difficult, evaluations of investments had to be cold.
“The vice presidents from other divisions who came before you said it was a good company. Still, you won’t change your opinion?”
“I’m sorry, but my assessment remains the same.”
“Good.”
The chairman nodded and looked at Sim Ju-won.
“You must have worked hard preparing the report. You must be busy, so you can go now. President Lee will stay and talk with me a bit more.”
The chairman’s tone was the same as usual, but there was a chill on his face.
At the chairman’s dismissal, Sim Ju-won stood up, bowed his head, and left the chairman’s office.
“What kind of person is he?”
“He’s the kind of person you just saw. The type who says no when it’s no.”
“I’ve seen many people like that since I was the heir apparent.”
The previous chairman had held onto management rights for a long time, constantly encouraging competition among his sons.
The current chairman had succeeded in various businesses amid such competition and now sat in this position.
Around him, there had been yes-men and people like Sim Ju-won whom he had just met.
“Most of them were bland types with strong egos who would say no when others said yes. If their ego is too strong, they can’t stay by my side.”
The president swallowed hard at the chairman’s words.
“V-Vice President Sim’s abilities are something I’ve observed. He’s also the one who led the improvement of the securities firm’s constitution.”
“Well, shouldn’t I be the one to judge that?”
The chairman said this as he picked up the report and moved from the sofa to his own seat.
“As you said, given his achievements in the securities firm so far, I held back today.”
Saying this, the chairman tossed Sim Ju-won’s report to one side of his desk.
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“It seems rumors are circulating in the market.”
Three days later, Dokyung was in the branch manager’s office, having been summoned by Branch Manager Ryu Tae-hwa.
Over the past three days, M-Biogen’s stock price had risen by over 9%, and it seemed information was spreading in the market.
“Information seems to be circulating blatantly. Just this morning, five clients asked about information on M-Biogen.”
Dokyung spoke with a furrowed brow, and Ryu Tae-hwa opened his mouth with a stern expression.
“So what was your response?”
“I told them that if the client wishes, they could take a position, but I wouldn’t recommend it.”
Of course, Dokyung had told the clients exactly as he had evaluated.
“And fortunately, the clients followed my opinion.”
“I see……”
Ryu Tae-hwa looked lost in thought, and Dokyung carefully opened his mouth.
“May I ask how you handled it, Branch Manager?”
“Pardon?”
“You said your clients were also interested in M-Biogen…”
“Ah, yes. I told them the same thing as Yoon Dokyung-ssi.”
Ryu Tae-hwa brushed it off. The time to tell the truth would come eventually.
“I see. That’s a relief. Although it will rise with various positive factors… I don’t think it will last long.”
“But it seems my client won’t listen to me.”
At Ryu Tae-hwa’s words, Dokyung nodded slowly, looking bitter.
It would be nice if everyone understood the reasons for opposition and feelings, but it was also selfish to expect them to just go along with it.
Ryu Tae-hwa continued speaking with a concerned expression.
“The market isn’t good, so it bothers me that all sorts of people are leaking this information and using scraps to lure others.”
Dokyung sympathized with Ryu Tae-hwa’s words.
Pharmaceutical stocks were often used by black hands because the business itself was difficult for ordinary people to understand.
Moreover, even executives seemed to enjoy using such situations to boost stock prices.
“If by any chance…”
Buzz-
Just then, Dokyung’s mobile phone started vibrating, and Ryu Tae-hwa stopped speaking and gestured for him to check it.
The notification was breaking news, and Dokyung’s brow furrowed.
“M-Biogen Presents New Diabetes Drug Research at American Diabetes Association Conference.”
“M-Biogen CEO Kim Changseon: ‘Confirmed Potential for Type 2 Diabetes Treatment in Research’.”
“CEO Kim Changseon: ‘Will Apply for FDA Phase 1 Clinical Trial Based on Research Results’.”
“Next-Generation Diabetes Treatment in Development? M-Biogen on Verge of Major Achievement 4 Years After Establishment.”
“M-Biogen…”
“I just saw it too.”
Ryu Tae-hwa was holding his mobile phone. He seemed to have received the same articles as Dokyung.
“I checked, and the stock price is shooting up.”
At those words, Dokyung turned on his mobile trading system to check M-Biogen’s stock price.
[M-Biogen +13.29%]
The market was certainly fast. Not long after the breaking news was delivered, the stock price was already rising explosively.
Buzz-
Dokyung was overwhelmed by the continuous vibrations and news.
‘A message…?’
The protagonist of this vibration was the message that had given him the task.
[Sometimes the market forces a choice at a crossroads.]
[At that crossroads, we must choose something, and at the end, only the consequences of our choice lie waiting.]
Dokyung had already chosen one path at the crossroads and was waiting for the consequences the message spoke of.
[We hoped that Yoon Dokyung-ssi would become someone who makes his own choices at this crossroads of choice, and as always, Yoon Dokyung-ssi did not disappoint our expectations.]
Amidst signals that the stock price would rise, Dokyung had chosen based on his self-studied insight, and the message seemed to be speaking about that.
[Recommended stock: Gaon Medical]
[Stock to watch out for: M-Biogen]
[This is the VIP service always cheering for you by your side.]
‘Stock to watch out for?’
“Do you think all of M-Biogen’s announcements are true?”
Distracted by the message, Dokyung looked up at Ryu Tae-hwa as he heard his voice.
“If they made the presentation at the American Diabetes Association, they must be confident…”
“They would be confident. They’ve always been confident about their technology.”
“Then the stock price will go crazy again when they apply for FDA Phase 1 trial.”
“I’m not so sure.”
Ryu Tae-hwa, who had been speaking as if resigned, looked at Dokyung in surprise at his answer.
“Pardon?”
“I think we should watch a bit more. As I said, new drug development isn’t that easy.”
Now Dokyung no longer needed to hesitate due to uncertainty.
He had already made his choice regarding M-Biogen, and a message supporting that choice had come.
At Dokyung’s confident smile, Ryu Tae-hwa felt an inexplicable trust washing over him, not knowing why, but feeling that Dokyung’s words must be true.