Chapter 30
Chapter 30
Black-Haired Awakened Investor, Episode 030
==========
I still feel awkward here.
The doorman who politely greets me and opens the door every time I come and go.
And the neighbors who exchange polite smiles when we meet in the elevator.
Just until recently.
My mother and I lived in an old, run-down apartment in Brooklyn.
In winter, cold drafts seeped in through the window gaps, forcing us to wear thick clothes even indoors.
Mold stains were clearly visible on the walls, and the elevator was more often out of order than working.
Many nights, I couldn't sleep because of the neighbors shouting and fighting.
Back then, the neighbors awkwardly avoided eye contact in the elevator, not exchanging a single word, and hurrying to get off on their respective floors.
But now it's different.
When the elevator doors open, a neighbor in stylish attire greets me with a light smile.
"Good morning."
We met in the elevator and exchanged greetings. In the process, I could guess his profession.
He was a doctor.
Stylish but practical suit, design prioritizing comfort.
And a pelican on his left chest.
That high-end writing instrument is one of the pens often used when writing medical records.
It may seem like an expensive hobby, but there was a good reason for doctors. Writing instruments are important for accuracy and convenience.
The watch mark on his wrist was a sign that he often took his watch off and put it back on.
The fine scratches on the back of his hand seemed to be common injuries among surgeons who frequently perform operations.
Furthermore, his refined but restrained attire conveyed humility, and his habit of constantly touching his wrist suggested that he was a sensitive and cautious person.
Combining these small clues to guess the other person's profession and background has now become my little hobby.
However, he seemed to have a hard time guessing about me.
He asked.
"If you don't mind me asking, what do you do?"
If I don't mind, he already does.
But it was a standard procedure, so I didn't care.
In a luxury condo, everyone would be curious about the identity of their close neighbors.
But to be precise, what he wanted to know wasn't just my job.
'He's probably more curious about how an Asian like me got into their territory.'
For the people who lived here, such questions felt noticeably natural.
Each time, it felt like a small test to see if I was someone who met their standards.
Another neighbor got on.
This time, it was a middle-aged white woman.
"Hmm?"
Her expression changed noticeably as soon as the door opened.
Great surprise flashed across her face. Soon, her eyes changed to a look of recognition.
"Aren't you, by any chance, running a hedge fund? I'm sure I saw you right? I'm so glad to see you! Do you live here?"
It's very difficult to recognize me.
She was a lady who was very serious about investing, meticulously checking even small articles.
In an instant, the air in the elevator changed subtly.
The doctor glanced at me again. He withdrew his attitude of trying to explore me and gave me a curious look.
The middle-aged woman, who was clearly a businesswoman, said to the doctor in a cheerful voice.
"He's the CEO of a hedge fund. He's getting a lot of attention on Wall Street."
At her words, the doctor nodded and gave me a slight smile. This time, it wasn't a polite smile, but a sincere one.
Before we could continue the conversation, the elevator arrived on the first floor, and I got off first.
I could feel their gazes from behind, still trying to talk to me more, but I didn't have time to linger.
My schedule is packed today.
The first meeting is with Goldman Sachs, which I both love and hate.
* * *
It had been exactly a week since I visited on the 20th.
At that time, I was an ordinary investor, but now I was entering here with a new identity as the captain of a hedge fund.
The same female employee was sitting at the reception desk as last time.
She smiled as soon as she saw me.
She spoke to me with a friendliness that wasn't there last time.
"CEO. You look great today too. Your meeting is scheduled for 9:10,"
Recently, I've only been interacting with older people, so her light welcome felt refreshing.
I responded.
"You changed your nail style."
She seemed to have changed her perfume to a light and refreshing scent as well.
'Spring is coming.'
Even if it's a spring distorted by the pandemic, I welcome the passing of the cold.
"I can go up to the 33rd floor, right? Ayla."
She blinked in surprise, but quickly regained her smile and said yes.
From the 33rd floor onwards, it is the area where executives and their teams reside in earnest.
I wondered, but as expected.
Victor greeted me at the meeting place.
I could immediately sense Goldman Sachs' intention to use Victor, who knew me well, in this gambling game.
"Do you get directly involved in these kinds of things these days?"
He laughed as if it were ridiculous and pointed in front of him.
"I'll go easy on you, so come and sit down."
It was just the two of us in the conference room.
"Today's schedule is packed by the minute. If you don't have the authority, bring the person with the authority. I really don't have time to waste on juniors without authority."
I answered while standing.
"I have that much, so sit down and relax."
He was always sharpening competitive knives at me, but today he was strange.
Instead of glaring at me.
He just laughed it off and even asked if I had coffee.
Soon, a cup of steaming Americano was placed in front of me.
I drank the coffee.
He began to look at the derivative explanation I gave him.
「 Therapeutics vs. Vaccine Performance Swap Agreement 」
Like the derivatives of the 2008 subprime crisis that even financial experts had difficulty understanding.
The design of this product is also very complex.
Many Vaccine stocks are tied to the valuation assets.
But among them, it was ultimately designed to react most strongly to [Moderna]'s stock price.
Moderna was carefully hidden with complex equations and tiered structures.
It would be at a time when it didn't matter even if it was revealed, when it was revealed.
The outline is simple enough to be summarized in one line.
If the stock prices of therapeutics rise higher than the stock prices of vaccines, the therapeutics side wins.
The opposite is also true.
He asked without taking his eyes off it.
He was clearly surprised.
"How long have you been preparing this?"
It was a question he asked while trying to be as nonchalant as possible.
When I calmly passed it over while leisurely drinking coffee, he also focused on it silently.
Soon he reached for the detailed explanation.
No matter how much he glared, it was impossible for him to fully understand the contents with his abilities.
Then he looked up.
"You. Weren't you alone?"
His eyes were shouting at me to sort out his confusion right away.
An aggressive look like an angry wolf.
It seems like I'm finally seeing the original him.
"It takes a lot of manpower and time to create a product. You can think that way enough."
"What?"
"You won't believe me even if I say I'm alone. So let's not involve personal feelings and focus on business."
I spat out at him, who was speechless as if he was dumbfounded.
"How much are you going to contract?"
* * *
The contract was bound to be smooth.
Because I brought a product that large institutions would naturally have to buy.
It's natural to buy an umbrella on a day when it suddenly rains.
Above all, even though the product I brought was complex in design, the simple outline had the merit of offsetting that complexity.
Soon, he picked up a pen and even signed it.
The basic contract is for $10 million, but considering the maximum payout rate is 20 times.
In the end, it's a $200 million contract.
If therapeutics beat vaccines, I have to pay Goldman Sachs up to $200 million.
If the opposite happens, Goldman Sachs has to pay me $200 million.
Nevertheless, it is a common and trivial contract for large institutions like Goldman Sachs.
"You're making money so easily. It must be nice that living in the world is getting easier."
He sneered.
He revealed that Goldman plans to invest heavily in the vaccine market in the future, so they have no choice but to buy this product, which is the opposite position that can profit even if the therapeutics market succeeds, for risk management.
This time, I couldn't hide my bewilderment.
With that sneer, he indirectly told me Goldman Sachs' internal information.
That Goldman Sachs' basic policy is in vaccines.
That was something that a guy like him would never do by mistake.
'Did he eat something wrong? Why is he suddenly showing me this favor?'
He snorted at me.
"What."
I don't know what triggered it.
But it's certain that he no longer sees me as an object of competition and envy like before.
If so, I needed to change my plan with a flexible mind.
I'll go straight here without bothering to go around Wall Street.
I gestured to the product description and said.
"Why don't you try selling that at Goldman Sachs? The commission is the industry average."
Goldman Sachs was also one of the best on Wall Street as a broker.
I've been through it since I was an intern, so I know it at a glance.
Goldman Sachs' product development department is currently melting away professional manpower and time to develop the products I brought, as I said.
'It's also just starting.'
He pretended to think for a moment and then asked.
"How much can you handle?"
I had a contract that I had brought in anticipation of this kind of sound.
The contract in which Barclays approved a 4x leverage of the fund's funds.
If I show that to him, he said.
"If Goldman Sachs can swap, up to $4 billion."
"That's good. Was the briefing a build-up for this?"
Now I think I know where his changed appearance came from.
He used to compete fiercely with his colleagues while managing tens of millions of dollars, but now he doesn't even blink at the astronomical amount of $4 billion.
Even if it's company money, he has achieved a step forward.
That's why the obvious saying that a position makes a person is used as a universal truth.
When I smiled slightly, he glared as if he was displeased.
I spat out at him.
"Sell it well."
But then, as I was about to get up from my seat.
He stopped me.
He blew away all the expressions he had made so far and asked with a serious face.
Can I make the board bigger?"
He wants Goldman Sachs to invest funds as well.
'That's how it should be.'
If you can't smell money here, you don't deserve to be on the street.
Now all that's left is the profit sharing negotiation.
* * *
As other departments of Goldman joined, the discussion proceeded more earnestly.
When we found a point that was satisfactory to both sides and reached an agreement.
Time had already passed frantically.
It was late afternoon as evening approached.
The elevator was full of people leaving the office.
On the Prop Trading floor, a guy who used to be a teammate also boarded the elevator.
We made eye contact.
But we didn't bother to acknowledge each other.
Then, he asked out of the blue while looking straight ahead.
"Is it true that you're going to invest in vaccines?"
"Yes."
I saw it at that moment.
His face reflected in the elevator door.
The clear sneer on his face with the corners of his mouth raised.
Eric, this bastard is really hopeless.
He doesn't know what kind of deal went on above and he's laughing alone.