Chapter 67
Chapter 67
Translation: Godtl
Bitcoin.
The first cryptocurrency created in 2009 by a pseudonymous developer named Satoshi Nakamoto.
It's a completely digital currency with no physical form, designed to operate without the control of central institutions, banks, or governments.
The core technology behind Bitcoin is blockchain.
All transaction records are distributed and stored across a global computer network, making counterfeiting or hacking extremely difficult.
"Bitcoin is both a new currency for the digital age and a system managed by mathematical algorithms and a global computer network. In other words, it's money without physical form."
"Wow. But how is this being traded at $400? Something without physical form having value is..."
"Exactly. Assigning value to something intangible..."
"It's like gold. Honestly, I don't know why gold has value either, but it's because people have assigned meaning and worth to it that it commands its current price."
Bitcoin could be considered the gold of the digital era.
It can be instantly transferred anywhere in the world, cannot be counterfeited, and with its total supply capped at 21 million, there's no worry about inflation.
"That's just the explanation meant to fool people on the internet. To me, it looks like a scam no matter how I look at it. Why on earth would anyone pay $400 for something like this?"
"On top of that, I hear similar things to Bitcoin are popping up more and more. And the fact that people are actually buying and selling this with real money? It's insane."
The current price of Bitcoin was $400.
Frankly, even to me, this price was hard to comprehend.
Burning $400 on a mere fragment of data that doesn't even have physical form—even if they claim it can't be hacked, that itself might be a scam...
It was a system that defied common sense.
'But why is my intuition reacting to this?'
Moreover, this was the first time it had reacted in such a way, so I couldn't even tell what it meant.
At first, black tendrils extended from a specific currency and touched Bitcoin, then multiple colors blended into one, as if representing chaos itself.
"..."
Wondering if I'd missed something, I looked up information about Bitcoin.
Is it telling me to buy this?
But there was no reaction regarding purchasing Bitcoin.
Then what exactly is it showing me this phenomenon for? What does it want me to do with this?
"I hear Bitcoin trading volume is quite substantial overseas. But looking at the scale, it's not that huge either. Plus, recently one of the relatively larger exchanges got hacked, and all the coins there were completely wiped out, I hear?"
That was the moment.
The sensation that hadn't fully clicked suddenly struck my entire body with such force that it made me physically jolt.
"Chief, did you just say it got hacked?"
"Ah, yes. It wasn't on an enormous scale, but still, it was one of the top three exchanges, and all the customers' coins there were stolen due to the hack. Not just that, we're hearing about hacking incidents at other exchanges quite frequently too."
Is it reacting to the hacking?
No.
What's gripping my collar and shaking me isn't the hacking—it's something else.
'...Exchange?'
My body trembled even more intensely at that.
"Are there any Bitcoin exchanges in our country?"
"Ah, yes. There are a few won-based markets. But their scale is extremely small, and the actual number of coins available for trading is very limited, so domestic Bitcoin buyers hardly use the won exchanges."
Looking into the data, even the few exchanges that existed were currently shutting down.
Low trading volume and significantly fewer coins compared to foreign markets were major drawbacks.
'Am I supposed to acquire these exchanges?'
I placed my hand over each exchange name on the list.
No sensation came.
"A few have already closed down, and only three are barely hanging on, but they're reportedly on shaky ground too. There's strong resistance both overseas and in our country, with people thinking it's probably a scam. Most importantly, while foreign markets offer hundreds of different coins, in our country you can only buy 4-5 types."
I had managed to figure out that my intuition was reacting to the exchange, but it showed no response when it came to acquiring one.
Even after hearing the employees' explanations and researching the data, the only thing that triggered a reaction was the word "exchange" itself. Beyond that, I couldn't sense anything substantial.
Moreover, acquiring existing exchanges wouldn't generate immediate profits anyway.
What the hell am I supposed to do with this?
Are they telling me to build a new exchange from scratch?
"······?!"
But then, a reaction surged from that very thought.
I jotted down "establishing a new exchange" in my notebook.
The moment I did, my hand gripping the pen trembled as if struck by a sudden jolt.
'Wait... So I really have to create an exchange?'
＊＊＊
Hwang Dae-un, Chairman of Gwangun Group.
He had no idea the position of chairman would be this exhausting.
Calls from overseas came in at dawn, tasks piled up like mountains, and there was hardly any time to rest.
Honestly, he could've just dumped all this work on the vice chairman and gone off to enjoy himself.
But this Gwangun Group—and the chairman's seat—wasn't something Hwang Dae-un had earned through his own efforts.
Jeong Jin-ho had built it all for him.
That's why, even after becoming chairman, he never once entertained the thought of slacking off or flaunting his position.
He wanted to push himself a little harder, to contribute more to the company.
Only then could he eventually hand it over to Jin-ho, neatly packaged and thriving.
"······But what the hell is this?"
Hwang Dae-un frowned at the agenda item that had come up today.
"A Bitcoin exchange? What kind of nonsense is this?"
"It's a proposal submitted by President Jeong Jin-ho. He wants to establish a new subsidiary and open a fintech exchange."
"Alright. But a Bitcoin exchange? Is that even popular these days?"
"Neither in Korea nor globally is Bitcoin trading volume particularly high. It did get some attention briefly, but most people dismiss it as an absurd system."
First of all, the fact that people were willing to put money into such a system was shocking enough. Then, hearing that Bitcoin's current price was $400 per coin left him even more stunned.
But Jeong Jin-ho was taking it a step further—he wanted to establish a Korean won-based Bitcoin trading market.
"Why the hell does Jin-ho suddenly want to build an exchange for this? And on top of that, he's planning to partner with overseas Bitcoin exchanges?"
Even the executives were baffled.
In fact, most of them had only just learned what Bitcoin was today.
People were paying $400 for a virtual currency?
It made no sense.
"Sigh. The market's wide open, but I can't exactly drag him here when he's busy."
Jeong Jin-ho was technically one of Gwangun Group's executives.
But he rarely attended executive meetings.
They made sure to handle all the tedious tasks for him so he could focus entirely on investments.
"There are a few places in Korea where you can trade Bitcoin, but the variety of coins is extremely limited. That's why President Jeong Jin-ho seems to be aiming to partner with overseas Bitcoin exchanges—to open up access to hundreds of coins."
Opening an exchange ultimately meant profiting from transaction fees.
But right now, Bitcoin trading volume in Korea was scraping rock bottom, and overseas wasn't much better.
"What's even more noteworthy is the investment capital. The initial investment alone exceeds 100 billion won. Realistically, if we only opened servers domestically, it could be done within 10 to 20 billion. But President Jeong is planning to set up servers overseas as well, not just in Korea."
Partnering with foreign exchanges to bring in hundreds of coins and list them.
That was the key difference that would set it apart from existing domestic exchanges.
With technical support from overseas, they'd build the system, deploy servers both locally and abroad, and continuously hire developers—all with the intention of running a thriving exchange not just in Korea, but globally.
"What does everyone think?"
"It's a rather puzzling decision, to be honest. If Bitcoin's going to rise, wouldn't it be simpler to just buy some?"
"Not to mention, the current price is a whopping $400, isn't it? It's completely overinflated. On top of that, trading volume has started hitting rock bottom. Doesn't launching an exchange at this point seem risky?"
Hwang Dae-un was thinking the same thing.
Anyone with sound judgment looking at the current market trends would naturally come to that conclusion.
"But considering they're even establishing a subsidiary company to create this exchange..."
This was Jeong Jin-ho, who had never once made such a proposal before.
Moreover, all the executives here knew full well that Jeong Jin-ho wasn't ignorant about these matters.
Yet the fact that he was pushing to open an exchange suggested there was definitely something more to it.
"And it's 100 billion won, right? Chairman Jeong Jin-ho brings in trillions—would he really hesitate over a mere 100 billion?"
The executives here knew enough to understand.
That Jeong Jin-ho had played a decisive role in creating Gwangun as it stood today.
And that it was still Jeong Jin-ho driving Gwangun's continued growth.
Their role had already been decided.
To ensure Jeong Jin-ho faced no internal or external obstacles in his investments.
"Approve it immediately. If Chairman Jeong Jin-ho needs anything, provide full support."
"Yes, Chairman."
Once again, the chairman and executives faithfully carried out their duties.
＊＊＊
4:30 PM.
Chairman Kangsung and his executives sat in the conference room, silently staring at the screen without a word.
Their palms were slick with cold sweat, their mouths parched.
Until the eve of the election, most polling agencies had predicted Hillary's victory.
Even in the key swing states of Wisconsin and Michigan, polls showed Hillary leading.
Frankly speaking, throughout the election cycle, every media outlet had attacked Trent.
Amid countless conspiracy theories and political controversies, everyone had bet on Hillary's win.
But no matter how much the media clamored, the American people seemed to think differently.
[Hillary Clinton's vote share: 48.2%. Trent's vote share: 46.1%. A staggering 3 million vote difference.]
The polls had been accurate.
Hillary led by a whopping 3 million votes.
But in America, having more votes doesn't guarantee victory.
With an electoral system different from Korea's, the president is determined by who the Electoral College chooses.
[However, with 304 electoral votes for Trent and 227 for Hillary, Trent has won this election!]
"!?"
The result defied all expectations.
Trent had become the new U.S. President.
"Well, I'll be damned. Should I be happy about this or not?"
Chairman Kangsung cheered with his executives, fist clenched tight, but part of him was utterly dumbfounded.
Who would've thought America would actually elect Trent?
A president embroiled in countless controversies, with his radical ideas.
The man who'd unapologetically vowed to build a wall with Mexico, impose bombastic tariffs, and even hinted at nuclear war with North Korea.
"Congratulations, Chairman."
"Whatever else happens, this bet was truly massive. No matter how unpredictable President Trent may be, he won't forget that Kangsung stood by him with support till the end."
"Once again, the Chairman's foresight shines through. Haha."
Kangsung smirked at his executives' words, then let out a sigh.
Truthfully, he'd been somewhat skeptical when Jeong Jin-ho predicted Trent's victory.
Every poll pointed to Hillary, and indeed, she'd won the popular vote.
But just as Jeong Jin-ho had said, Trent emerged victorious.
And Trent, true to his prior promises, would mercilessly unleash his tariff bombs—only to pause at the name "Kangsung."
After all, people tend to remember for a long time those who lend a hand in their most difficult moments.
When no one else was supporting Trent, hadn't Kangsung been the only one to generously send campaign funds?
Going forward, maintaining their position as the undisputed leader in semiconductors would hinge most critically on America's stance, and it seemed they could grow the company without major interference for at least the next four years.
"This isn't the time for this."
Jeong Jin-ho was probably watching the election results right now too.
He should at least send a word of thanks.
They'd both been so busy lately they hadn't been in touch much.
He'd heard that Jeong Jin-ho had recently become the CEO of a new subsidiary.
KW Bit, wasn't it?
"I heard the place is just gathering dust right now."
Should he call and offer some consolation?
＊＊＊
"..."
The entire world was in an uproar over Trent's presidential victory.
But Gwangun Group was more focused on another piece of news than President Trent.
"Is he out of his mind? Even if he is the Prime Minister, how can he turn banknotes into worthless scraps of paper overnight?"
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had abruptly announced an emergency currency reform, declaring that 500 and 1,000 rupee notes would be invalidated.
In other words, he was rendering those two denominations worthless—a massive shock that would turn 86% of the country's circulating currency into scraps of paper.
The problem was, starting with India, Indonesia, Zimbabwe, and Mexico—
Multiple countries had begun demolishing the value of their currencies as if they'd made some kind of pact.
"They're trying to collapse the underground economy. Especially since the rupee is infamous for black money, isn't it?"
India's intent was to eradicate black money.
And wasn't it true that rupees were widely used in various slush funds and illegal transactions tied to criminal activities? There was even a saying that for black money, people preferred rupees over dollars.
"But isn't this too extreme? Not 50%, but 86%?"
Such measures were nearly unprecedented.
Thanks to this, Indian citizens were lining up en masse outside banks, setting up camps to exchange their currency.
On top of that, as other countries besides India began tampering with their own currencies, the global monetary market was now in complete upheaval.
"But Chairman, it seems like this might actually work in our favor."
"Why?"
"Because of this currency reform, slush funds worldwide are on the move. Seeing governments crack down even on currency, they must've realized they couldn't just sit still."
"So?"
"Safe assets like gold can still be tracked and seized by governments, right? But there's one place they can't touch."
Was there really such a thing in this world?
"Bitcoin."
"What?"
"Trading volume has already surged hundreds of times over, both domestically and internationally. What had dropped to $200 is now breaking past $500."
The sudden currency reforms had sent black money scattered across the globe into motion.
Straight into the Bitcoin market, no less.
"Our KW Exchange barely had any new members after opening, didn't it? But now, new users are flooding in so fast the servers are overloaded. In our country, we're the only ones handling a wide variety of coins."
Ordinary people with no connection to black money were seeing the skyrocketing coin prices and jumping into the market one after another.
On top of that, this exchange operated 24/7.
And there was no limit to how high prices could rise.
"Wait—are people really paying money for those... those scraps of data?"
"They're not just scraps of data anymore, Chairman. If this goes well... it might even break past $1,000."
Chairman Hwang let out a hollow sigh.
A virtual currency more valuable than gold.
The world was spinning in strange ways.