Chapter 9
Kang Hyun entered the room that would serve as his office.
Everything had already been installed, so he powered on the computer and opened the charts across his monitors.
The selected assets were Bitcoin and the major altcoins.
The four monitors were soon filled with dozens of charts.
To an ordinary person, the screens would have looked overwhelmingly chaotic, but Kang Hyun calmly examined each one.
The black web is still visible even on the monitors. Every coin is connected.
The cryptocurrency market was a little different from the stock market.
Stocks weren’t all connected. Instead, companies were grouped together by sectors.
Cryptocurrencies, however, were effectively one massive sector.
After all, altcoins had originated from Bitcoin.
On top of that, Bitcoin alone accounted for more than 50% of the entire crypto market.
Which meant that when Bitcoin fell, the rest of the market couldn’t help but follow.
This black web is showing that every coin is linked together. They influence each other and move as one.
At last, he understood the meaning of the mysterious black web that had been hidden in the fog.
Now only one question remained.
The direction.
This time, I was able to identify the direction before the web appeared. The crypto market is turning bearish.
Judging by the intense blue light he had seen earlier, the coming downtrend would be severe.
It might even become another Ice Age like the one from 2017 to 2018.
Back then, Bitcoin had crashed to around 3 million won, disappearing almost entirely from the minds of Korean investors.
I need to move now.
Compared to Jung Sang Woo’s case, the crypto crash would probably happen much faster.
Not only did he need to sell all of his spot Bitcoin, but he also had to establish another position.
A short position.
A short position meant betting that the price of an asset would fall.
For example, if he shorted Bitcoin, he would profit only if Bitcoin’s price declined.
If Bitcoin rose instead, he would lose money.
Korean exchanges don’t allow shorting. I’ll need an account with a foreign exchange.
Having made his decision, Kang Hyun moved immediately.
While continuing his work, Kwang Ho couldn’t help glancing toward Kang Hyun’s office.
He suddenly said something strange, then shut himself in there without another word.
Don’t trade Bitcoin?
That was his favorite side income.
He wasn’t a long-term investor, but his short-term trades had been consistently profitable.
And now Kang Hyun was telling him to stop trading altogether?
It made no sense.
Kang Hyun has never commented on my positions before. Did he notice something?
Recently, Kang Hyun had changed.
After finding those thousand Bitcoins following his divorce, he had become much bolder.
Even starting a family office had been unexpected.
To be honest, he wasn’t exactly a standout trader back in our department. And now he’s planning to trade professionally himself…
Maybe all that money had changed him.
But Kwang Ho knew his friend well enough to believe that wasn’t the whole story.
I’ll find out soon enough.
For now, he’d simply watch what happened to Bitcoin.
If he’s right and it really falls, I’ll just follow his lead.
Although his main specialty was software development, Kwang Ho had still worked at a securities firm.
He already knew exactly how he would react.
Clack! Clack! Clack!
At that moment, Kang Hyun’s fingers flew across the keyboard.
With only the two of them in the office, the typing sounded unusually loud.
Unable to suppress his curiosity, Kwang Ho stood up and walked over.
“What are you doing?”
“Creating an account on BitFi.”
“BitFi? Why are you opening an account on an overseas exchange?”
“I’m going to open a short position.”
“So you really think it’s going to fall?”
“Yeah. Look at the charts on the upper-left monitor. The RSI has already entered the overbought zone while the price keeps climbing.”
RSI was one of the most widely used technical indicators.
A reading above 70 indicated that an asset was overbought and could reverse downward at any moment.
“You’re entering just because of that?”
“It’s not just the RSI. On both the monthly and weekly charts, the price is rising while volume is decreasing. That’s a classic pattern in overheated markets. On top of that, historically, Bitcoin has always entered a decline after reaching its peak following each halving cycle.”
Bitcoin wasn’t a currency that could be created endlessly.
Its total supply was permanently capped at 21 million coins.
As more coins were mined, mining became increasingly difficult.
Those scheduled increases in mining difficulty were known as halving events.
“So you’re saying history is repeating itself?”
“It’s a common fractal pattern.”
Fractals weren’t exactly a trading strategy.
They were a mathematical concept.
Among traders, the term referred to recurring patterns that repeated over different time periods.
“Hmm… I guess several warning signs really are lining up.”
“Exactly. When multiple signals point in the same direction, there’s no reason to take unnecessary risks.”
“So you’re opening a short as a hedge?”
If Bitcoin’s price fell, the value of Kang Hyun’s holdings would naturally decline.
Holding only spot Bitcoin, currently worth around 178 million won per coin, meant his wealth could evaporate rapidly if the market crashed.
But if he held spot Bitcoin while also opening a short position…
Even if prices dropped, the profits from the short would effectively offset the losses.
That strategy was called hedging.
But that wasn’t what Kang Hyun had in mind.
“This bear market could last a long time. If I just keep holding my coins, my capital will be tied up for a year. Before, that would’ve been fine. But not anymore.”
It would be fortunate if the crash ended with cryptocurrencies.
But the mysterious lights were telling him something else.
If this black web is real, there’s a chance AI stocks will experience a chain reaction as well. That would mean… the AI bubble is about to burst.
The worst-case scenario was beginning to take shape.
Bitcoin was trading at an all-time high.
As the king of cryptocurrencies surged upward, the major altcoins raced alongside it, each climbing at its own pace.
It was, quite simply, a massive money-making festival.
Naturally, crypto communities were overflowing with bullish predictions.
- Still shorting Bitcoin? Any short sellers left? LOL
- (Link) “Bitcoin Will Break $200,000!”
- The U.S. is issuing stablecoins.
- Whiterock is buying into XRP.
- Finder is increasing its crypto allocation too.
- The Big Three are basically all in now.
- Honestly, I don’t get why people still go to work every morning. Money literally prints itself with one click. Why work so hard?
- Just go long and print money LOL.
Stories of huge profits appeared everywhere.
News also spread that three of the world’s largest asset managers, Whiterock, Finder, and Union Street, were increasing their cryptocurrency holdings.
But not everyone was optimistic.
- Everyone’s screaming “LONG!” That usually means a crash is coming.
- Historically, Bitcoin always peaks after the halving and then falls.
- History repeats itself.
- The fractal pattern is obvious. People are seriously going long here?
- Looking at community sentiment, the bear market’s about to begin.
- Time to short!
There were others who shared Kang Hyun’s bearish outlook.
But they were a minority.
The bulls ruled the market, while the bears remained curled up in hiding.
Then one particular post caught everyone’s attention.
- The Korean whale holding 1,000 Bitcoins sold almost everything.
ㄴ Really?
ㄴ Yeah. Huge transfers recently.
ㄴ Probably cashed out and retired.
ㄴ Looks like it.
The legendary Korean whale, whose wallet had remained dormant for thirteen years, had finally sold.
Everyone had an opinion.
Some even mocked the mysterious owner.
- Selling during this bull market? LOL
- He would’ve made endless money just by holding.
- Guess he just got lucky.
- If it were me, I’d wait until Bitcoin hit one million dollars each.
- Certified weak hands.
Most people ridiculed the owner.
Naturally, they believed Bitcoin still had much further to rise.
But that confidence didn’t last long.
- Huh? Why’s Bitcoin dropping?
ㄴ It’s just a healthy correction.
ㄴ It’s only down five thousand dollars.
- It’s still above $120,000, isn’t it? Hardly moved.
- It just needs to gather strength before breaking $130,000.
A massive red candle erased five thousand dollars in an instant.
Even then, the community remained convinced that Bitcoin would continue climbing.
Kang Hyun looked at the profit displayed on his monitor.
Return: +3.98%
Profit: 1,002,230 USD
Just one day after opening the position.
Bitcoin had fallen by five thousand dollars.
As a result, Kang Hyun’s position had closed the day in profit.
At the current exchange rate, that’s over 1.4 billion won.
Using 200 Bitcoins as collateral with 2x leverage certainly accelerated the gains.
In truth, he had wanted to use even higher leverage.
But he couldn’t.
I didn’t realize this since it’s my first time trading crypto futures. The larger the margin, the lower the leverage you’re allowed to use.
It actually made perfect sense.
Without leverage restrictions, an exchange could easily go bankrupt.
To prevent that, most major exchanges applied leverage limits based on account size.
Since Kang Hyun’s margin placed him in the highest tier, he was restricted to relatively low leverage.
That’s fine. I still profit when prices fall.
It was a little disappointing.
But it didn’t change anything.
Bitcoin would continue to decline.
For now, all he needed to do was watch the market and respond accordingly.
Knock. Knock.
“Come in.”
The door opened.
Kwang Ho peeked inside.
“President, everyone’s here.”
Since they were at work, he addressed Kang Hyun formally.
No matter how close they were as friends, professionalism came first.
“I’ll be right out.”
Kang Hyun stood up and straightened his clothes.
I’m actually nervous.
It was his first time meeting all of his employees together.
Since today marked the official beginning of the company, feeling nervous was only natural.
Once he was ready, he stepped outside.
Five employees, both men and women, were waiting.
They would handle risk management, back-office operations, and trading support.
Standing beside Kwang Ho, Kang Hyun looked over each of them.
Just as he was about to speak…
Ding!
A notification echoed throughout the silent office.
Everyone turned toward the source.
It had come from Kwang Ho’s workstation.
Without panicking, Kwang Ho checked the monitor.
Kang Hyun also looked over his shoulder.
Sudden Price Movement Detected
The warning window covered a Bitcoin chart.
“Kang Hyun!”
Caught off guard, Kwang Ho instinctively dropped the formal title.
But that wasn’t important right now.
“We’ll do introductions later. Trading team, analyze Bitcoin and the entire cryptocurrency market immediately.”
“Understood.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Research team, gather every piece of information you can find and send it directly to me.”
“Yes!”
After issuing his concise orders, Kang Hyun headed straight back to his office.
Watching him leave, Kim Sung Won, one of the trading support staff, turned to Kwang Ho.
“Manager, does our company currently have a Bitcoin position?”
“We do. We’ve been holding a short position since yesterday.”
“A short? On Bitcoin? It’s been climbing nonstop…”
One of the fundamental rules of trading was never to fight the market.
No matter how talented a trader was, no one could perfectly predict the psychology of a crowd caught in euphoria.
Unless there was a clear reversal signal, experienced traders followed the trend.
Seeing Kim Sung Won’s doubtful expression, Kwang Ho rotated his monitor toward him.
“I think our CEO might just be one step ahead of the market.”
“Huh?”
Kim Sung Won looked at the screen in confusion.
Then his eyes widened.
BTC: -3.55%
Current Price: 116,704.5 USD
Bitcoin was still falling.
“For reference, the CEO opened his short around $126,000.”
“Holy… Does that mean he’s already up more than seven percent?”
As expected of someone hired for trading support.
He calculated the returns almost instantly.
“Bingo.”
As he answered, Kwang Ho glanced toward the CEO’s office.
Inside, Kang Hyun sat silently, his eyes fixed on the monitors.
When did you become this good at trading?
He had watched everything firsthand.
How Kang Hyun analyzed the market.
How he consistently made money.
It was still early.
But there was no denying that Kang Hyun’s trading skills had become far superior to what Kwang Ho remembered.
At moments like this, there was only one thing for him to do.
“Alright, everyone! Let’s follow the CEO’s orders! We’ll do introductions after the market settles down!”
“Yes, sir!”
He got the employees moving.
Then one more thought crossed his mind.
Maybe I should open a short too.
Might as well take advantage of having a genius for a friend.
Kwang Ho’s fingers immediately flew across the keyboard.
This is the end of Chapter 9.
