Volatility or uncertainty.
Those were the words companies hated most, and exactly why they avoided dealing with unpredictable partners.
But what if the unpredictable party was the U.S. Federal Reserve?
In that case, there was nothing anyone could do but accept it.
No ordinary company could object to a decision made by the Fed chairman, often called the "economic president" of America.
"The U.S. Federal Reserve just made an official announcement. They've reversed their position and decided to maintain the scale of quantitative easing. Just as you predicted, Chairman, the Fed is acting accordingly."
"I assume the U.S. stock market is in chaos right now."
"Shares of companies heavily influenced by interest rates are all soaring, and bonds, futures, and currency rates—everything is fluctuating wildly."
There was a reason the head of the Fed is called the economic president.
With just a single statement, not only America but the entire global economy shifted.
Just one word about maintaining quantitative easing transformed all economic conditions.
"How did you know the Fed would stick with quantitative easing?"
"That's a rather late question. Isn't that something you should've asked during our preparations?"
"I've learned through experience that it's always most profitable to follow your instructions, Chairman. So I feel more comfortable asking my questions after the fact."
President Han had already finished all the preparations.
Thanks to his foresight, his team was now reaping massive profits from the suddenly transformed stock market.
He'd completed all his tasks, which was why he could speak so candidly.
"Inflation and employment numbers weren't looking good. The Fed had no choice but to keep the quantitative easing card on the table."
"The Fed chairman did mention inflation and employment indicators in today's announcement. But it still feels like a thin basis to predict such a sudden reversal."
I couldn't exactly say I could see the future.
To convince President Han, I had no choice but to bring up the White House.
"When I was invited to the White House, I sensed that atmosphere. Of course, no one said anything directly, but if you closely observe the reactions of the President and key officials, you can read the direction of policy."
"So you're saying you picked up on flimsy evidence through intuition. That's something someone as clueless as me could never imitate."
President Han wasn't particularly good at forecasting.
He excelled at analysis—his strength lay in taking a projected scenario and breaking it down to design the optimal profit structure.
"We just need to do what we're best at. How's Tae-woo Securities' yield shaping up?"
"I'm certain we'll post the highest returns of any Korean financial firm. I expect the customers in the Tae-woo Securities fund will be stunned by how high their returns are."
"We all need to prosper together. If we're the only ones doing well, we'll just end up disliked."
Tae-woo Securities managed two types of capital.
One was Tae-woo Group's own funds, and the other came from customers raised through mutual funds.
"That's why we shared the information with all the firms in the Financial Tower, isn't it?"
"What's the reaction? Any complaints about why we gave out the info so late?"
"People might think that, but no one dares say it aloud. A single wrong word could see them kicked out of the next operation—who would risk it?"
It was a form of discipline.
Alternating stick and carrot is the only way to properly train.
Those financial firms who could only watch during the tightening phase were now able to benefit during the quantitative easing phase.
So, how could they possibly rebel?
As long as we gave them confidence that the carrots would keep coming, they'd remain docile hunting dogs—loyal members of the Financial Tower—for good.
"If any firm dares complain, leave them out of the next game."
"By next game, you mean quantitative tightening, right? But will that really happen? Even the Fed would have a hard time switching back from easing to tightening once again, wouldn't they?"
From the perspective of financial firms, it was maddening.
The more the U.S. Federal Reserve wavered, the more the firms had to stay up all night responding.
But for us, it was good news.
If we knew about the Fed's whimsy in advance and prepared properly, we could earn substantial profits.
"The first time is difficult, but the second time is actually easier. Besides, the U.S. really needs to start tapering quantitative easing now. This decision to maintain it is just buying time."
"Then let's plan based on the assumption that quantitative easing will be reduced by the end of this year."
"Returns will gradually decline. The market will get used to the volatility. Still, we'll be able to pull out decent profits."
It was President Han's time to shine again.
We had to prepare for the next round right now.
After a long time, I visited Tae-woo IT.
I had something to discuss with Team Leader Chun.
I was able to easily spot Chun, who was busily moving around here and there.
"I should buy you an electric scooter or something. You're using up all your energy just getting around."
"Do you think that's okay? Honestly, I was thinking about getting an electric wheelchair, but I didn't because it might draw unwanted attention at the company."
"Who at Tae-woo Group would dare give you a hard time?"
Chun looked straight at me.
Then she spread all ten fingers wide and started folding them down one by one.
"There's the Chairman, the heads of all subsidiaries, and just within Tae-woo IT alone, there are dozens of people with higher ranks than me."
"I can't speak for the other subsidiaries, but within Tae-woo IT, there's no one who can say anything to you now. You're about to be promoted to Head of the AI Center, and you'll also take on the role of Vice President overseeing Tae-woo IT."
"Me?"
Most of Chun's peers were assistant managers or managers.
She couldn't believe she would be promoted not only to head but also to vice president.
"Then who else would you promote? You're the one who built the AI Center from scratch."
"I was only preparing; I thought a new Head would be coming."
"Why would we look for a new head when we already have such a recognized talent right here?"
Team Leader Chun's face flushed red.
I was not teasing her—far from it.
Everyone acknowledged her skill, and there was hardly anyone who would oppose her being promoted to head at such a young age.
"But won't there be resistance from those with higher ranks or who have worked longer at Tae-woo Group?"
"You are already essentially acting as the head. You're involved in most of the projects Tae-woo IT is running, especially all the AI-related ventures."
Chun was the busiest person in Tae-woo Group.
Judging by her schedule alone, she seemed to need ten bodies rather than one.
Her track record was impeccable, having led multiple challenging projects to success one after another, more than qualifying her for the head position.
"Still, I feel it's too soon for me to become head."
"Once you're head, you'll have a lot of authority. For example, sponsorship decisions for e-sports or advertising fall under the head's discretion."
"...Can I collaborate with e-sports players too?"
"Absolutely. The head has the authority to proceed with collaborations without head office approval."
"Then I'm going to do it!"
As expected, Chun Min-jung was passionate about e-sports.
"You'll be officially appointed sometime next week. There's nothing special you need to prepare, just prepare yourself mentally. You'll get a private office, a car, two secretaries, and one executive assistant."
"It feels a bit awkward, but I'll get used to it, right?"
"A manager's time is precious. With secretarial help, you'll be free from all administrative work."
"I'll do my best."
Chun looked awkward and unsure how to handle the attention.
So I naturally shifted to work topics.
"The AI division is running well, right? I'm not able to oversee everything since you're collaborating with so many firms."
"All the companies collaborating with us are very satisfied. Especially Novo Nordisk—they've doubled their AI usage requests and are demanding AI-related data almost excessively."
AI and new drug development.
It used to be a niche interest.
But the deep-learning AI developed by Chun and the talented researchers at the AI Center greatly aided new drug development.
No wonder there was such eagerness.
Centurion's rapid insulin production was thanks in large part to AI.
Novo Nordisk's board also received progress reports and understood this.
"Based on the information we provided, do you think Novo Nordisk could create or copy an AI with similar capabilities?"
"It's not entirely impossible, but with Novo Nordisk's pharmaceutical expertise, it would be difficult to replicate Tae-woo Group's AI. They might be able to imitate it to some degree, but that's all."
"That's disappointing."
"What do you mean by disappointing?"
A worthy opponent is more fun to fight.
The harder you strike, the more you can use your opponent's strength for greater impact.
But Novo Nordisk was moving very cautiously, and if this continued, it would take ten years for the situation I wanted to come.
I couldn't wait that long.
If the other side hesitated, the only option was to push them.
"Is it possible to leak core technology so that Novo Nordisk can copy the AI? Not giving them all the core tech, just enough for them to create a plausible version."
"That's not difficult. We can provide the AI technology from the prototype built two years ago anytime."
"Not handing it over per se, but maybe leaving it in plain sight so Novo Nordisk can easily steal it?"
Carrying stacks of cash isn't a crime.
Those who failed to resist temptation and stole the cash bore all responsibility.
"It's possible, but is there a reason to do it? Even though it's a downgraded version, very few companies have that level of AI."
"If Novo Nordisk creates a downgraded AI, could Team Leader Chun remotely control it?"
"If we embed a few lines of code in the core technology, I can control it however I want."
"The moment Novo Nordisk steals the AI tech, please modify the drug development data accordingly."
It was a kind of Trojan horse strategy.
The stolen AI tech could become a Trojan horse, a tool to attack inside Novo Nordisk.
"How should we modify the drug data?"
"Make it look like completely useless garbage."
"It's not easy, but possible. First, modify all the information stored in the database, then contaminate the experiment records."
This was an opportunity to steal Novo Nordisk's diet drug development.
Of course, if Novo Nordisk didn't steal the core AI tech, there was nothing we could do.
But human greed is endless.
I was confident Novo Nordisk would steal our Trojan horse.