Chapter 49: The Reason It's Bound to Succeed
Chapter 49: The Reason It's Bound to Succeed
Although he was running several businesses, Biolife, which researched vaccines and treatments, couldn't produce results directly.
He had placed his complete trust in Dr. Lee Ho-yeon and his researchers.
Fortunately, thanks to ample funding, they were able to expand the research team, and Professor Paul Lesser's team from Johns Hopkins University had joined them.
- Kim Shin: Once Source Coin is launched as planned, I'll provide unlimited computing support.
- Lee Ho-yeon: Thank you.
- Kim Shin: Make sure you get some rest.
- Lee Ho-yeon: Thank you for your concern.
He and Dr. Lee Ho-yeon exchanged texts every two or three days.
With COVID-19 spreading across the globe, he could only imagine the immense pressure the doctor was under.
As someone who had dedicated his life to curing infectious diseases, his determination and passion for a vaccine and treatment must be tremendous.
‘All I can do is watch...’
The production company in Korea was new, so it was building its foundation through investments, production preparations, and YouTube.
The videos filming him in the U.S. were up to episode three and were apparently gaining popularity.
The channel's subscribers had surpassed three million.
On the day the short video of him earning 10.5 billion dollars was uploaded, they said he gained 1.8 million subscribers in a single day.
The video had over 100,000 comments, so he didn't even dare to try reading them.
“What is your favorite hobby, CEO Kim?”
Producer Seong Ho-jin asked various questions during filming.
He seemed much more enthusiastic than when he first arrived in the U.S. As he spoke, with three cameras filming, Kim Shin felt a bit self-conscious.
‘Would it be embarrassing to say gaming?’
Ever since he was poor, gaming had been a less expensive hobby.
Even now, playing duo games with Oh Myeong-woo at the office or the apartment was the most fun he had.
He thought about it for a moment, but no matter how hard he racked his brain, a sophisticated hobby wasn't going to magically appear.
“Gaming.”
“Gaming?”
“Yes. I mostly play PC games. I lose track of time playing, and it's really fun when I win.”
A plain answer to a plain question.
As he answered, he assumed they would just edit it out.
“Upload it. Upload everything!”
Producer Seong Ho-jin uploaded the casual conversation as is.
He said that because the impact of the investment returns was so strong, they needed to upload a lot of small stories that could satisfy people's curiosity about him.
The result...
- Why a Billionaire Enjoys Computer Games
- The Hobby of Super-Rich, Busy Kim Shin is Gaming
- Kim Shin Hones His Competitive Edge Through Gaming
- Gaming is Positive for Intellectual Development
Diligent reporters published articles connecting him and gaming.
Seeing articles that praised him so excessively made him think the public's criticism of reporters wasn't for nothing.
On the other hand, if he showed any weakness, those same reporters would tear him to shreds without hesitation.
Producer Seong Ho-jin sometimes threw sharp questions at him during filming.
“Many viewers are concerned about Source Coin. Most coins don't proceed as planned and are suspected of being scams. What will you do if a situation arises where Earth Resource can't exchange Source Coin for dollars?”
He had been waiting for a question like this.
It was easier to talk about things that had a model answer than about his private life.
“Personally, I don't believe in the word 'trust' in business. I think it's a word that scammers love to use. The issuance of Source Coin will be strictly regulated and will only occur within the limits of the company's capital.”
“So you mean you'll only issue as many Source Coins as the company can handle?”
“Yes. The coins will be issued at a level that allows for redemption at any time. And since it's a company where I own 100% of the shares, if anyone suffers a loss, I will not evade my responsibility.”
He had no intention of committing fraud, so he couldn't help but be confident in his answer.
The two days before Source Coin's official launch were the calm before the storm.
He deliberately went to a San Francisco beach and drank a can of beer.
The leisure and comfort of enjoying a cool beer.
It would be too miserable to live buried in work without enjoying simple pleasures like this.
“CEO Kim.”
“Yes?”
Writer Kim Soo-jin called out to him.
“So far, the videos have mostly been interviews and office life.”
“That's true.”
The office life of a super-rich man.
Just watching him talk with his employees got a good response from viewers.
They said he looked cool working in a suit.
Honestly, he wore suits back when he was a salesman at Arcor, but he didn't remember getting this kind of reaction.
It was probably because of the confidence he'd gained since becoming super-rich, and the extra zero added to the price of his suits.
“It would be nice to have more variety. Show a more human side of you, too. Do you see that woman sitting alone over there?”
Where the writer pointed, a beauty with long, dark brown hair was sitting alone.
Her distinct facial features and model-like figure were certainly eye-catching.
“How about you go talk to her?”
“What? You want me to talk to her?”
“Having a beer with someone would look better on camera than drinking alone. Plus, you're in your prime, living with Mr. Oh Myeong-woo, and you don't go on dates with women. There are even rumors spreading that you're gay.”
Hitting on people was a common occurrence at tourist spots or beaches.
More than anything, the fact that viewers were misunderstanding his relationship with Oh Myeong-woo was horrifying.
‘I'll just approach her casually, like I'm asking for directions.’
Without much thought, he walked up to the beautiful woman and spoke.
“Hello.”
Alluring dark eyes looked up at him.
Seeing her up close, her beauty was almost breathtaking.
There were plenty of beautiful women in the U.S., but the ones you saw once in a while were so unrealistically beautiful they looked like they'd stepped right out of a movie screen.
“Want to have a beer together?”
He'd said it without much thought, assuming he'd be rejected anyway.
She smiled.
“Sure.”
This was unexpected.
He heard murmurs from among the filming crew.
“It actually worked?”
The dark-brown-haired beauty's name was Isabelle.
Her age... was 23.
He asked if it was okay to film her, and she readily agreed.
“Are you a college student?”
“No. I'm here for work.”
Her job was a model.
She had come to San Francisco for a Spanish fashion magazine photoshoot and was taking a break after finishing her work.
“So, why did you say yes?”
“You seemed interesting.”
She said that working as a model, she could tell clothes, and his very expensive suit and bodyguards had caught her eye from the start.
Plus, he was being followed by broadcast cameras and a crew.
As expected, it wasn't a simple acceptance; the influence of money seemed to be the deciding factor.
“So, what do you do?”
“Um.”
It was his turn to introduce himself.
He wanted to give an interesting introduction, but nothing came to mind.
When he used to go backpacking, he would just say he was an ordinary Korean. But his current situation didn't quite allow for such a simple statement.
“I do a bit of investing and business. Though I haven't achieved much with the business side yet.”
“I see.”
After the brief introduction, they drank their beers together, looking out at the beach.
* * *
Oh Myeong-woo felt a new sense of responsibility after becoming the vice president of Earth Resource.
“I tried to live freely, but this is the first time I've stood in front of people like this since being a raid leader.”
Feeling the weight of the crown, he attended a strategy meeting with the marketing team.
There were employees who had transferred from other companies in Silicon Valley.
“What's the promotion plan? Television, radio, internet ads, and so on.”
“The launch date is the most important.”
“Even if we start a massive marketing campaign now, it's late. We need to properly inform the users. If we can get over 10,000 units mining on the first day, our company's value will increase significantly.”
The marketing team members discussed what they believed was the best strategy.
For startups, their corporate value can fluctuate by tens of times depending on their initial sales.
If the launch day was sluggish, it could cast a dark cloud over the entire business.
However, there was something they didn't know.
Oh Myeong-woo, attending the meeting, spoke with a confident expression.
“Don't worry, everyone. We'll hit 10,000 units on the first day without any problems, even without promotion.”
“That's impossible.”
“You can't take 10,000 units lightly. In the early stages of market entry, even 100 users are precious. Do you know how much Microsoft spends on advertising every time they launch a new business? And even then, many of their projects fail...”
“We need to promote aggressively, even if it means taking a loss. Market dominance is the priority, and market share will become money.”
Listening to the marketing team, Oh Myeong-woo barely suppressed a yawn.
Still, he thought it was a genius's duty to listen to such stale talk.
“Everything you're all saying is correct, but you're unaware of two things.”
“Two things?”
“First, I'm a programmer. Source Coin is an incredibly efficient and well-made program. So people will come on their own...”
To the marketing team, it was a ridiculous reason, but they waited to hear the second one.
“The second thing you don't know about is Korea.”
“Korea?”
“Yes. Don't underestimate Korea in the world of the internet and gaming!”
* * *
Kim Shin's daily broadcast.
Those who clicked on the first episode found themselves magically compelled to watch the second and third.
“Khehehet. I love this.”
Na Sang-guk subscribed, liked, and turned on notifications.
He liked every single video and left a comment on each episode.
- Hope the Source Coin project is a huge success!!!
- COVID!!! As expected of Assistant Manager Kim Shin!!!
- Thank you. I'll live a good life.
After watching the first episode, he followed Kim Shin and bought put options.
It was an all-in bet with his cash assets, and he succeeded in making a 7-fold net profit.
‘7 times the profit in 5 days. This is insane. Insane.’
Kim Shin may have made 52 times his investment, but realistically, isn't a 7-fold return more than enough?
With 40 million won, he made nearly 300 million.
‘What is life? It's about getting in the right line. The right line. How long would it take to save money working a corporate job for a hundred years? From now on, I have to unconditionally follow Kim Shin's investments.’
Looking back at Kim Shin's investment, he realized that if he had sold the put options a little later, he could have achieved a total return of 58 times.
He didn't achieve the maximum profit, but in a way, this could be seen as a human touch.
- Na Sang-guk: Revealing my returns. 736% in one week.
- Lee Jeong-shin: Is that for real?
- Na Sang-guk: Of course! Have you ever seen me lie?
- Na Sang-guk: I may have wavered with coins. But now, my eyes have been opened to investing. That's what I'm saying!
He was joyful and happy, as if a rosy future had unfolded before him. But he wasn't the only one who had made a huge profit.
- Kim Sang-gi: Huhuhu. My return this week is 1,297%.
- Na Sang-guk: What?
- Kim Sang-gi: I bet on put options following Kim Shin. I was curious about his life in the U.S. and we were chatting, hehe.
- Kim Sang-gi: As soon as I heard he bought put options, I bought them too. This is what you call improvisation, quick moves. And I sold when Kim Shin sold.
- Kim Sang-gi: When it comes to investing, all you have to do is trust Kim Shin. Uhahahahat.
Na Sang-guk was envious of Kim Sang-gi's relationship, being able to contact Kim Shin personally.
After Kim Shin hit the jackpot, Na Sang-guk had sent him a few texts, but there was no read receipt, making him wonder if he'd been blocked.
If only he had done a little better at the company.
‘It's not over 'til it's over.’
The opportunity to make money was still wide open.
He went to the coin message board and started writing a post.
- Buying Source Coin. Will buy 10,000 at 2,000 won each.
He set out to buy Source Coin.
Kim Shin's business model seemed brilliant.
‘I think this is really going to work.’
Having thrown away money on coins for over a year, he knew it instinctively.
The coin market, where you could make a fortune with a plausible scam.
All sorts of scam techniques were baked into coins, but what would happen if a real one appeared among them?
‘Money printing season 2 is about to happen.’
As a "coiner," he believed that day would surely come.
- Buying Source Coin! Will buy all future supply. 2,000 won each!
- Source Coin/100%/Real/Guaranteed Purchase
- Pre-ordering Source Coin