1988 - In the Bahamas (1)
1988 - In the Bahamas (1)
"Umm......"
I opened my eyes.
Clearly, yesterday, I fell asleep holding the exhausted Ara in my arms......
'Where did she go?'
There was no warmth in the spot beside me.
As if yesterday was a dream, I was lying alone on the king-size bed.
"Haaam-."
I stretched and went out to the living room.
'Coffee smell?'
The first thing to greet me was the fragrant aroma of coffee.
"Are you awake?"
Ara, sitting on the sofa in a robe with wet hair, as if she had already finished showering.
In her hand was a book.
"You woke up early? How are you feeling?"
The current time was 4:30 AM.
It was still early, even before the alarm had gone off.
"I'm sorry. I fell asleep on my own."
"......No, it's fine."
It looked more like she passed out than just fell asleep.
But if she's physically fine, then it's not a big deal.
"More importantly, what are you doing at this early hour?"
"There's a lot to prepare."
"Prepare?"
"Breakfast, and also a lot to study."
Only then did I see the title of the book.
Principles of Corporate Finance.
A classic introductory finance textbook written by Brealey and Myers.
It was a book I bought to get a feel for it but never even touched.
"Good attitude. So, have you figured anything out?"
"Not yet. I just started reading."
"Then I shouldn't disturb you."
It is a book that would be helpful to read.
If this were an era with the internet, I'd have her look up hospitals or have her do other tasks, but in this era, there's no answer besides books.
More than that, is she really okay after passing out like that?
It's good if the secretary is diligent, as it makes the employer's life easier.
For now, I'll just observe a bit.
It's only been a day since we met, after all.
Drip drip-.
I went to the kitchen and poured some coffee.
"As I said yesterday, if there's anything you don't know, just ask. I can explain things at the level of most teachers."
"Yes."
Her concentration is good.
The sight of her writing densely in a small notebook makes it clear why she was a good student.
'It'll take quite a while for her to get used to things.'
Looking at Ara's profile, the disheveled image from last night replayed in my mind.
I want to do it again.
Maybe because it's morning, or maybe because I'm having such thoughts.
Strength surged to my lower body again.
'I should hold back.'
I'm not a monkey, and even though she's mine and my woman, I don't intend to disturb her constantly.
That would ultimately hinder her development and, in the longer term, come back to bite me.
"Ah! That's right! I forgot to ask you something yesterday."
"Please tell me."
"Do you have a passport?"
"A passport? Yes, I do. I've never used it, though."
"Then get ready to go to the Bahamas the day after tomorrow."
My final pilot's license came out the day before yesterday.
Filling the flight hours was truly grueling, but perhaps because I flew a private plane even before the regression, I managed to pass all the exams in one go.
Today, I'll send the plane tickets to Matthias and plan to meet him the day after tomorrow.
Finally, I'll be able to launder money and start rolling that capital in earnest.
"Then, may I go to Dallas today?"
"Dallas?"
"My passport is at my home in Dallas."
Come to think of it, she wasn't from New York.
"Is your brother's hospital also in Dallas?"
"Yes."
"I'll give you a few days, so take this chance to move everything. Prepare to change the hospital to New York as well. Let's depart four days from now."
"......Thank you."
Instead of accepting her thanks, I gestured for her to come.
It's cute how she walks over gingerly, still seeming uncomfortable.
"......?"
"I don't believe thanks in words. Show me with actions."
"Then, the things I'm thankful for will just keep increasing."
Saying that, Ara nestled into my arms, opened her mouth, and stuck out her tongue.
The next day.
After seeing Ara off to Dallas, I returned to my room and opened the Status Window.
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<Memory Palace>
[Nikkei 225]
[Federated LBO]
[Firestone M&A;]
[Drought]
[Coopers M&A;]
[1988 Event 7] : 30K
[1988 Event 8] : 40K
[1988 Event 9] : 50K
[1988 Event 10] : 60K
[Kraft M&A;]
[RJR Nabisco LBO]
[1988~1990 Mark/Dollar Chart] : 100K
[1988~1990 Yen/Dollar Chart] : 300K
[1988~1990 US Prime Rate Chart] : 500K
[1988~1990 US 30-Year Chart] : 1M
Held Coins : 1.3M
───────────
Held coins are 1.3 million.
Probably, the decimal places beyond the second aren't displayed, and I likely have a few tens of thousands more coins.
Ultimately, two choices remain.
First, open the US Treasury bond chart.
Second, open the foreign exchange chart.
The events probably don't need to be opened all at once, so I'll hold off for now.
I roughly have the prime rate in my head, so it's not urgent.
The pros and cons were clear.
US Treasuries allow for long-term planning.
Foreign exchange allows for constant cash generation.
The cons are that US Treasuries require idle capital, and foreign exchange requires a credit line.
In the current situation, both are insufficient, making it hard to gain significant profits.
Although I could probably make small profits with foreign exchange.
'No matter how much I think about it, still.......'
If I can't gain a big profit immediately anyway.
'Open US 30-Year Chart.'
After quite a long deliberation, I decided to open the US Treasury bond chart.
───────────
[1988~1990 US 30-Year Chart]
Held Coins : 332.1K
───────────
Remaining coins are 332,100.
And as soon as I thought about viewing the chart.
'Oh, fuck.......'
A three-year chart literally appeared before my eyes.
The fact that I didn't utter the curse out loud is something I can only praise my self-control for.
Being able to see future charts in advance?
If this isn't a cheat key, then what is?
Even though only the opening and closing prices are visible, it doesn't matter since I plan to hold US Treasuries long-term.
"This might just work."
Taking on China.
That absurd imagination began to seem slightly possible.
'A head-on confrontation with brute force would be difficult.'
If it becomes a battle of capital, no matter what I do, I can't win.
Even if I become richer than the combined wealth of the world's top thousand richest people, it's impossible.
Fighting China with cash is insane.
But.
'What if I create an unequal chicken game structure?'
If when I spend 1, I force China to spend 10 or more?
The damage would inevitably spread throughout society.
"Good."
I immediately took out a notebook and began drawing a roadmap.
My own map to devour the world.
February 3, 1988.
From Manhattan, load the money and head to New Jersey.
From New Jersey, take a rented light plane to Opa-locka, Florida.
And inside the plane heading from Florida to the Bahamas after refueling.
Ara and I had many conversations.
"What exactly is tax deferral?"
She asked, glancing at the duffel bags loaded in the back seat.
"Strictly speaking, it's more like tax evasion than deferral."
Since it's illicit money, tax evasion is unavoidable.
"......That's, true."
When she first saw the duffel bags, Ara couldn't hide her tension.
It's only natural.
Someone who lived their whole life unconnected to crime suddenly has to move bank robbery loot.
"Well, deferral is just as the word suggests. It's postponing the tax you have to pay."
"Can't you just pay it?"
"Because if you invest that money and grow it, the profit becomes larger."
Whether you invest with the money left after paying taxes, or invest first and later pay all the deferred taxes in a lump sum.
If you calculate, the latter is overwhelmingly higher in profitability.
And that's all a form of compound interest.
"Won't the IRS catch you?"
"That's why we're going to the Bahamas."
"How is that possible?"
How can I explain this simply?
"With stocks, you only pay tax when you sell and make a profit, right? That's called a taxable event. You understand that much, of course?"
"Yes."
That's an obvious condition.
When you sell stocks and the final profit comes in, a legal obligation to pay capital gains tax arises.
"It's the same with funds."
Although the product doesn't exist yet, an ETF, called an exchange-traded fund, might be easier to understand.
"When an investment company delegates to an asset management company, the asset management company buying and selling products doesn't mean profits come in for the investor."
No matter how much products are bought and sold within that ETF basket, the investor has no reason to pay tax.
The tax obligation arises when the investor liquidates the ETF and finally obtains cash.
"So, no matter how much the investment grows from buying and selling products, only the fund's value increases, and the taxable profit is zero dollars."
"I understand that much. Then you could just put it in a fund, right?"
"Then I wouldn't be able to invest as I please."
"Ah! Are you disguising it as a fund created by someone else?"
"It's a bit different. Using another name is only for laundering. To later liquidate and bring it into the US, it has to be under my name."
"......It's difficult."
Of course it's difficult.
Explaining the structure in an understandable way becomes extremely complicated.
You have to explain the structures of private equity funds, hedge funds, offshore funds, the differences between corporations and partnerships, and connect it all to tax law.
Ara let out a deflated 'Huuu-' sound.
Finance stuff gives you a bit of a headache, right?
Actually, bringing the liquidated money into the US is tougher than setting up the deferral structure.
The government and the IRS aren't fools either; they add interest by period to deferred earnings and levy punitive tax amounts.
But I should explain that later.
If I tell her now, Ara's head might explode.
"We're almost there."
Land began to appear in the distance.
"Nassau Approach, this is King Air N88KA. 20 miles west, altitude 8,500 feet. Inbound for landing. Airport information Bravo confirmed."
Chiiik-.
[King Air 8KA, Nassau Approach. Squawk 4321. Altimeter 29.92. Maintain VFR.]
"4321 set. Kilo Alpha."
After the static-filled radio transmission ended, the airport came clearly into view not long after.
The settlement for black money.
It was the Bahamas.