A Wall Street Genius's Final Investment Playbook-Chapter 147

This year, the Context Summit is being held at the ‘Boca Raton Resort & Club.'

An exotic architectural masterpiece infused with Spanish charm, combined with a tranquil private beach, made it a vacation hotspot often called paradise on earth.

However, I had no time to enjoy that paradise.

The moment I stepped into the resort lobby, familiar faces entered my sight.

"Sean, you've arrived. I should have come to meet you at the airport…"

A Goldman associate approached first and greeted me politely.

It was quite unfamiliar to see someone who once used to rush to the M&A department just to see me now behaving with such formality.

But…

‘Well, I’ll get used to it.'

It was only natural.

I was no longer a ‘colleague' but a ‘client.'

That was thanks to me designating Goldman as my ‘Prime.'

Prime is short for prime brokerage, a special brokerage service exclusively for hedge funds and institutional investors.

In other words, Goldman was now my broker.

Beside the associate, a man wearing glasses was ruffling his messy brown hair with a bright smile.

"Sean! Right on time!"

It was Dobby, who had recently left Goldman to become an early member of my fund.

For this summit, I had specially decided to bring him along.

"Let's check in first and go over the schedule."

After securing our rooms, we gathered in my suite—the largest one—to review our plans for the next three days.

"Tomorrow, we have one-on-one meetings starting at 10 AM."

The primary objective of attending this summit was to attract investors.

That was also why the Goldman associate was accompanying me.

One of the prime brokerage services includes capital introduction.

Capital introduction serves to connect funds with investors—in simple terms, it's like matchmaking in the financial world.

For the next three days, I would be meeting with numerous investors through Goldman’s introductions.

"We’ll start with a meeting with the San Diego City Employees’ Retirement Fund, followed by one with the Missouri Public Employees' Retirement Fund…"

As I requested, Pierce arranged several meetings with pension funds.

However, something felt off.

"Most of them are small institutions."

Upon checking the assets under management (AUM) for the San Diego City Employees’ Retirement Fund, it was only $9 billion.

It might seem like a massive sum at first glance, but by pension fund standards, it was relatively insignificant.

For instance, compared to the California Public Employees' Retirement Fund, which manages a staggering $460 billion, the gap was undeniable.

The associate hesitated and cautiously responded.

"Securing meetings with large pension funds isn’t easy."

"Was that Pierce’s decision?"

"Yes, for now…"

Financial matchmakers avoid making reckless connections.

They selectively arrange meetings only with potential matches that have a high likelihood of success.

Yet, Pierce hadn’t even attempted to arrange meetings with major pension funds.

‘Is this because he’s wary of me, or does he simply see the chances as too low?'

Well, I would find out soon enough.

In any case, the schedule briefing continued for another fifteen minutes.

Finally, as the briefing ended, the associate looked at me expectantly and asked,

"As requested, you have no scheduled appointments today. How do you plan to spend your time?"

"I think I’ll take some free time."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah, rest is important too."

As soon as I mentioned ‘free time,' both the associate and Dobby’s faces lit up.

After all, in a place dubbed paradise on earth, free time was practically an unexpected paid vacation.

"Then, we’ll see you tomorrow. Let’s meet in the lobby at 9 AM."

"Sounds good."

As the associate and Dobby hurriedly moved to leave the room, I also stood up and strode toward the door.

The two of them abruptly stopped in their tracks and tilted their heads.

"Where are you going?"

"I’m just stepping out for a bit."

"Outside…?"

The associate glanced me up and down with a somewhat stiff expression.

Then, swallowing nervously, he asked,

"Without even changing clothes?"

My formal suit was far from a vacation outfit.

In their eyes, I could see a mix of worry and suspicion, as if thinking, ‘No way…'

Since there was no need to hide it, I answered honestly.

"I figured I’d take a look around the summit since I’m here."

There was a reason I deliberately kept the first day free.

Besides the official schedule, I had other things to take care of.

However, my response made both of their expressions darken.

"You just said it was free time…"

"Oh, I’ll be going alone. You two can relax."

I reassured them again that I had no intention of disturbing their rest, yet their expressions remained grim.

"Are you planning to cause trouble again…?"

Dobby even muttered under his breath.

Feeling slightly wronged, I responded.

"Trouble? I’m just going to look around."

"You say ‘look around,' but it never ends there! What fire are you planning to start this time?!"

Fear, almost terror, flickered in Dobby’s eyes.

It seemed that letting me loose in a place full of investors made them extremely uneasy.

‘How unfair.'

But considering Dobby was the one who always had to stay up all night cleaning up after me whenever I did cause trouble, his reaction wasn’t entirely unreasonable.

"I’m not an arsonist, okay? I don’t go around starting fires recklessly. I really am just going to take a look today."

I meant it.

Of course, at some point, I did plan to start a fire on a Theranos-level scale.

But today wasn’t that day.

‘It’s not the right time yet.'

Even setting fires requires proper technique.

If you set one carelessly, it won’t spread properly.

To build real momentum, thorough prior research is essential.

You also need to secure insurance in advance.

Most importantly, you must have the right kindling in place.

Only after gathering all the right sparks and positioning them correctly do you pour the gasoline at the right moment.

Right now, I was merely in the reconnaissance and preparation stage.

So, there was absolutely no chance I would cause trouble today.

"Nothing will happen, I promise."

I spoke with complete sincerity, but they didn’t believe a single word.

After a brief silence, the associate finally spoke, as if resigning himself to fate.

"Then… I’ll go with you."

"…Me too."

"You really don’t have to…"

Dobby looked at me with a resentful gaze.

***

We moved toward the business center, which was only five minutes away from the resort.

The Context Summit was the most prestigious and influential event in the financial industry.

True to its reputation, the excitement and energy inside the center were palpable.

Holding the participant package I received at the registration desk, I immediately opened the event guide.

The summit was a place to highlight the latest issues and trends in finance and business.

It featured keynote speeches, sessions, and panel discussions by distinguished speakers on the most pressing topics of the time.

This year’s theme was…

"Finding Alpha in a Rapidly Changing Global Market"

"What is the Next Generation of Alpha?"

As expected, ‘alpha' was the central keyword.

Alpha refers to investment performance that exceeds benchmark indices and is a key metric for evaluating hedge fund success.

For example, if the S&P index rises by 10% while a specific fund achieves a 15% return, the extra 5% is considered alpha.

The important thing is that hedge funds aren’t recognized simply for achieving high returns.

Their profits must be ‘alpha' to be truly valued because hedge funds demand a hefty performance fee of 20% of the profits.

For instance, imagine a fund investing in big tech companies and earning a 30% return.

Would you pay a 20% fee for that?

Of course not.

Anyone could make that kind of investment.

Investors are willing to pay high fees to hedge funds because they believe in their ability to generate returns through differentiated strategies, rather than merely riding market trends.

That’s precisely why they pay a fortune to hire fund managers—to find that ‘alpha.'

Thus, alpha is both the benchmark for evaluating fund managers and the absolute focal point for all fund managers and investors.

In that context, the majority of this year’s sessions focused on experts sharing their own alpha-generating secrets.

"Which session are you planning to attend?"

At the associate’s question, I closed the guidebook and smiled.

"I’ll check out the sessions later. For now, let’s get a feel for the overall atmosphere."

I wasn’t here for the wisdom of the speakers.

More than that, it was crucial to assess my standing among the investors gathered in this venue.

‘Let’s see… time to test the Theranos Effect.'

The Theranos controversy had certainly made me a public figure, but I needed to determine how much that recognition actually translated into financial value.

To figure that out, I had to gauge how many investors were willing to open their wallets for me and how much they were willing to pay.

For a while, I wandered leisurely through the event hall.

Given that my face had been plastered all over U.S. news channels in the past few weeks, and considering that there weren’t many Asians in this setting to begin with, I stood out even without doing anything.

Soon enough, people started approaching me after recognizing me.

"Oh? Aren’t you the guy from the Theranos incident…?"

"My name is Sean Ha. I’m the CEO of Pareto Innovation Capital."

"Haha, I figured you’d be here too."

Many people came up to me, but their reactions were markedly different from those of the general public.

There was no cheering or support.

Their interest lay in only one thing.

"What is your alpha-generation strategy?"

I immediately pulled out the prepared response.

"The core of my strategy is a combination of an algorithm-driven investment model with an 80% accuracy rate and an activist investment approach. The algorithm predicts market participants' behavior to capitalize on profitability triggered by certain catalysts, and…"

My alpha stemmed from foresight through regression, my inherent 80% accuracy rate, and the activist approach that had recently boosted my fund’s returns and growth.

That was an undeniable source of alpha—but unfortunately, only I knew that.

I couldn’t exactly say, ‘I can filter out stocks that will pass the FDA’s needle-eye test, and by the way, I’m from the future.'

So instead, I gave a plausible explanation while carefully observing the investors’ reactions.

‘Hmm… ambiguous.'

Their responses were mixed.

The investors at the summit could be broadly categorized into four groups.

First, family offices—they managed the wealth of prestigious families, prioritizing the preservation and inheritance of assets.

Rather than short-term performance, they focused on the fund manager’s investment philosophy, values, and connections, as well as the synergy they could bring.

Second, high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs)—these were wealthy individuals seeking to discover the next genius investor.

They tended to favor funds that employed bold and innovative investment strategies.

The third group consisted of institutional investors—pension funds, insurance companies, and university endowments managing massive amounts of capital.

Their top priorities were investment stability and sustainability, and they made decisions based on data-driven analytical approaches.

Lastly, fund of funds (FOF) investors—these entities diversified their investments across multiple hedge funds.

Their strategy focused on mitigating risk through portfolio diversification rather than betting on a single fund.

Perhaps that’s why…

"This is interesting. How much committed capital do you currently have?"

"I’m curious—how quickly does this strategy translate into returns?"

Family offices and HNWIs showed strong interest in my alpha.

On the other hand, institutional investors and fund of funds were less enthusiastic.

"Do you have any backtest data?"

They wanted data to verify my alpha—meaning they needed evidence of past performance.

"Sean managed capital at Goldman for a year. Using the same algorithm, the annualized return exceeded 400%…"

Dobby stepped in to provide the explanation on my behalf.

‘Well, that’s why I brought Dobby along for these kinds of questions.'

Saying such things myself would make me seem desperate.

However, even after hearing Dobby’s explanation, the institutional investors remained lukewarm.

"I see. Is one year of data all you have?"

It seemed they considered one year’s worth of performance insufficient.

‘So Pierce’s assessment was accurate.'

Even with the recognition I gained from the Genesis Investment deal, the Epicura scandal, and the Theranos controversy, it still wasn’t enough to sway major institutions.

The wealthiest investors were still hesitant.

But there was no need for disappointment.

‘This isn’t bad at all.'

In fact, for institutional investors and fund of funds at this level to even consider a brand-new fund was unusual.

The fact that they were asking about my alpha strategy meant they were already interested.

They were just waiting for more solid data before committing their money.

‘And that’s just a matter of giving them the right nudge, isn’t it…?'

I had a general sense of what approach I needed to take.

When I glanced at my wristwatch—an artistic masterpiece in itself—I noticed the hands had already moved to 2 PM.

‘Time to move on to the next step.'

Now that I had assessed my standing among investors, it was time to seek out my next target.

Just as I was about to leave, a murmur spread through the crowd.

"Gasp!"

Dobby even audibly swallowed his breath.

Curious, I turned my head—and saw an unexpected figure striding toward me.

A familiar face.

A middle-aged man with a seemingly gentle expression, yet sharp, blade-like eyes.

"You’re here too, I see."

Dex Slater—the White Shark.

The same White Shark who had been framed for racism during the Epicura incident and then used as kindling once again in the Theranos scandal.

It wasn’t surprising that he was here.

I had already seen his name listed as a speaker in the event guide.

And since we had publicly reconciled, it wasn’t strange for him to approach me with a greeting.

But…

‘This is unsettling.'

His smile sent a chill down my spine.

It was too natural to be forced—almost as if he were greeting an old friend.

Given our history, that shouldn’t be possible.

Still, wearing that eerie smile, he spoke.

"Would you mind having a private chat with me?"