coobybook Chapter 355 : The Goose That Lays Golden Eggs (13)
Chapter 355 : The Goose That Lays Golden Eggs (13)
The CRISPR Medical board of directors was anxious.
‘What if Ha Si-heon interferes now, right before our surprise clinical trial in December?’
They had been inching forward quietly in the shadows, even amid the noisy chaos, trying to get ahead without drawing attention.
But if Ha Si-heon were to suddenly shine a spotlight, set off fireworks, and shout to the world’s press, “Hey, look over here!”?
Even imagining it was horrifying.
That is why they urgently called Pierce, a man known as the ‘Ha Si-heon expert.’
But because the fact that they were also about to begin human clinical trials was a top-secret matter known only to a select few, they could only give Pierce a vague explanation.
“There’s a very important turning point in December. Until then, we absolutely cannot draw any attention… but Ha Si-heon’s involvement is putting us in a difficult situation. We need a solution—”
However—
[It’s impossible to stop him.]
Pierce’s reply was sharp, almost instant.
As if there wasn’t even room for debate.
[Ha Si-heon has already set his sights on your company. And once he bites, he doesn’t let go easily.]
His voice was full of conviction.
Of course—Ha Si-heon himself had said aloud that he would “roast the turtle alive if necessary to make it stick its head out.”
[Looking at his past behavior, there are two likely scenarios. He’ll either shake your stock price with a short attack, or he’ll file a 13D notice and declare a hostile takeover. Personally, I find the 13D scenario more probable…]
“Couldn’t he at least delay things until after December—?”
[No. That’s exactly what’s impossible.]
Pierce cut in firmly.
[Ha Si-heon is not someone who waits. If he plans to make a move, he will definitely act before December.]
It was a strange contradiction—he had a meticulous personality, yet he rushed everything at an absurd pace.
No one knew why…
But at least according to Pierce, that was what “being Ha Si-heon” meant.
Pierce spoke again.
[Don’t try to delay until December. Advancing your plans would be the wiser choice.]
Since Ha Si-heon would never wait, the advice was to strike first.
But the board shook their heads.
“No, it must be December. We have reasons that cannot be changed.”
[This is not an optional decision. It’s like seeing a hurricane on your route and insisting on driving straight into it. Take a detour. Even if it feels slower now, that’s how you survive.]
But the board’s reaction was cold.
One director openly voiced suspicion.
“You’re from Goldman, aren’t you? Someone who worked with Ha Si-heon for years? Listening to you, I’m getting uncomfortable. Every piece of advice you give basically says we should ‘surrender to Ha Si-heon.’ It feels too one-sided.”
[What do you mean by one-sided?]
“I’m saying you may have lost objectivity, that maybe you’re biased toward him because of your personal history.”
At that moment, a scoffing laugh came through the receiver.
[Ha!]
Pierce was literally scoffing.
Personal friendship with Ha Si-heon?
What utter nonsense.
“Isn’t that why you always step in for matters involving him?”
[By that logic, wolves and sheep, cops and criminals, paparazzi and Hollywood actors must also have ‘close personal relationships.’]
[Being nearby doesn’t automatically create closeness. You don’t need to worry about my objectivity.]
[But if you dislike my advice, feel free to seek another expert. Though you’ll find that far from easy. I’ll keep today’s conversation confidential.]
His voice was strangely confident.
As if certain they would eventually return to him anyway.
The meeting ended in that uncomfortable air.
Afterward—
The CRISPR Medical board did, in fact, reach out to numerous investment banks and consulting firms.
But…
To their surprise, Pierce had been right—finding anyone capable of replacing him was extremely difficult.
“Ha Si-heon? Ah, well… we unfortunately have another engagement…”
“We’re terribly sorry, but we’ve suddenly become short-staffed…”
“Our internal compliance policy prevents us from dealing with potential conflicts of interest…”
They would show interest at first, but the moment the name “Ha Si-heon” came up, everyone’s attitude flipped.
Some waved their hands frantically as if warding off disaster.
Others reacted as though they’d just heard a death sentence.
One consulting firm partner was even more blunt.
“Becoming Ha Si-heon’s enemy is suicide. We would like to continue living, thank you.”
CRISPR Medical was stunned.
No matter what, they hadn’t expected this level of reaction.
‘Are we supposed to handle this ourselves…?’
But even thinking about it made clear how foolish that would be.
Most of the executives and board members were from research backgrounds.
They had neither the knowledge nor the experience for a financial war or a hostile takeover defense.
They desperately needed a seasoned professional.
But only one option remained.
Just then, Pierce contacted them.
[Still feeling the same way?]
His voice carried a faint amusement.
As if he fully expected this outcome.
“To be honest… yes. There is no one else.”
[I told you so.]
“But… all you ever advise is that we ‘submit to Ha Si-heon,’ so our hands are tied. Is that truly the best advice you can offer?”
Pierce paused.
The phrasing “submit to Ha Si-heon” irritated him.
‘Is that how I sounded…?’
He recalled the look Ha Si-heon had been giving him lately.
A look that resembled a superior glancing down at a subordinate.
A look that said, ‘In this arena, you work under me.’
It had become increasingly overt—and Pierce had found it quietly aggravating.
And now, realizing others might see him as someone under Ha Si-heon’s shadow…
He couldn’t let that stand.
Finally, Pierce spoke.
[That advice was based on experience, not submission. But if you want a head-on confrontation... I can build you a strategy.]
It wouldn’t beat Ha Si-heon.
But at least they could make it difficult for him—annoy him, slow him down.
[It’s like trying to stand with an umbrella in a hurricane. The odds of success are low. But if you insist—]
“We’ll take the risk. We want to try.”
[Very well. Then I’ll help you.]
After setting up the board so that even if they lost, Pierce himself would take no damage—
Pierce added another comment.
[However, my consulting fee will increase a bit. This job requires hazard pay.]
***
Pierce immediately began crafting CRISPR Medical’s defensive strategy.
Honestly, it was a rather enjoyable process.
It was his chance to demonstrate his presence to Ha Si-heon.
‘Did he think I was just watching from the sidelines all this time?’
By now, Pierce had mapped out Ha Si-heon’s behavioral patterns in great detail.
That was why people called him the “Ha Si-heon expert.”
Pierce’s first piece of advice was simple.
“As I said before, Ha Si-heon will choose one of two strategies. A short attack or a 13D filing. Either way, he’ll pull the public and retail investors into the fight. We can’t just sit and wait. We need to move first.”
Ha Si-heon’s greatest strength was his ability to sway public sentiment.
Among those tools, the most dangerous was—
“We must block retail traders from joining the short.”
If Ha Si-heon took a short position, the retail investors who worshiped him would rush to short alongside him.
That had to be prevented at all costs.
Of course, retail investors currently viewed Ha Si-heon as a “saint,” following him with blind faith.
Breaking that belief wouldn’t be easy.
But there was a way to respond.
“You start by retrieving as much free-floating stock as possible. Contact major brokers and cut off all borrowable shares early. Even if retail traders want to short, they can’t do anything if there’s no stock to borrow.”
Shorting begins with “borrowing someone else’s shares and selling them.”
In other words, if borrowable shares disappear from the market, retail investors simply have no practical way to join the short, no matter how badly they want to follow Ha Si-heon.
“The key is to choke off supply. Reset lock-up periods, get cooperation from major shareholders, and restrict securities lending to brokers.”
To take a short position, one must borrow shares.
But most shares held by brokers were actually client-owned.
By default, they were marked as “lendable,” but clients could manually switch them to “not lendable,” and shares already lent out could be recalled.
If institutional investors and major shareholders cooperated, the total pool of borrowable shares could be drastically reduced.
But Pierce didn’t stop there.
“Let’s tighten supply further using an ASR. Sweep up every freely tradable share in the market.”
ASR (Accelerated Share Repurchase) was a large-scale buyback method executed through investment banks.
If CRISPR Medical openly bought back its own stock in the market, that alone would signal something and push the stock price higher.
If the earlier method was “don’t let retail borrow my shares,”
This one was “I’ll buy up the shares others could borrow.”
“We’re going to flush out the retail traders completely.”
Retail investors were highly sensitive to short-term profit.
“They’re always hungry for gains. So you feed them in advance. A full retail trader doesn’t move.”
Pierce laid out the specifics.
“Concentrate the buyback during peak trading hours. One hundred fifty million dollars over six weeks. If the stock rises 30%, retail traders will think it’s the perfect moment to lock in profit. That’s the psychology we exploit.”
The strategy was to artificially generate a 30% gain so that retail investors would cash out and exit.
“And once someone has taken profits, they rarely re-enter quickly. Their thinking becomes, ‘I sold near the top—hasn’t it risen too much to get back in?’ Especially with a 30% gain, most will be satisfied and stay out.”
It would cost money, of course.
However—
“Compared to the real cost of fighting Ha Si-heon, this is pocket change. If he attacks and the retail crowd joins him on the short, your stock price could literally be cut in half. Think of this money as insurance.”
Pierce’s logic was compelling.
Thus, following his plan, the framework for the short-defense strategy took shape.
No matter how much Ha Si-heon agitated, no matter how many retail investors wanted to follow him, if there were no shares to borrow, the short couldn’t happen.
How would Ha Si-heon react when he discovered this?
Pierce was curious—but it wasn’t over yet.
He moved on to the next phase.
“Now what’s left is the 13D filing—defending against a takeover attempt.”
Ha Si-heon currently held 4.9%.
Just 0.1% more and he could file a 13D and challenge management.
“We can’t stop him from buying shares. So the only answer is this: make it clear that even if a shareholder vote is held, no one stands with him.”
In other words, securing a majority was crucial.
“On the surface, your shareholder structure looks solid.”
CRISPR Medical’s shareholder composition was as follows:
Retail & small institutions: 9%.
Founder group: 22%.
Early VCs: 18%.
Pharma partner: 25%.
Long-term mutual funds: 25%.
Fortunately, aside from the retail shareholders, all were friendly groups.
More than half the shares were firmly on management’s side.
However—one could never underestimate Ha Si-heon.
“Do not become complacent. Ha Si-heon has a devilish talent for manipulating human psychology. No one knows whether the votes shown on paper will translate into actual votes. You must tie down every vote securely.”
The biggest risks were mid-sized institutions and short-term investors.
Even if they cashed out now, they could always re-enter later.
So those seats had to be filled with shareholders who would never budge.
“European pension funds and Nordic funds rarely move once they buy. Transfer shares into their hands. This isn’t aggressive defense—it’s using their inertia. Once they buy, they won’t sell for ten years. Nothing Ha Si-heon does will matter.”
Goldman’s sales team stepped in to pitch CRISPR Medical stock to these long-term investors.
The slower the client, the better.
The transactions proceeded quietly.
“Now we need to signal the friendly shareholders not to move. Without crossing any legal lines.”
So the board reached out to major shareholders.
They discreetly contacted mutual funds, early VCs, and pharma partners.
And they dropped only one hint: “Something important is coming in December.”
Delivered carefully, without crossing into insider trading.
Knowing a positive catalyst was coming in December, these shareholders wouldn’t be easily swayed by market noise.
With that, the groundwork was complete.
But Pierce did not relax.
He checked everything again and again.
There was no flaw.
‘There’s no borrowable supply for shorts. Even if he declares a 13D, there are no shareholders who will side with him.’
He had sealed off two of Ha Si-heon’s primary weapons completely.
Did Ha Si-heon know?
Even if he did, he wouldn’t give up.
He would definitely bring something else.
Pierce waited, almost excited.
A few weeks later—
“Ha Si-heon has made a move!”
Pierce’s heart pounded.
Would it be a short attack? A 13D filing?
Where would his strategy break?
But the information he received was different from anything he expected.
Ha Si-heon’s next move appeared, at first glance, completely unrelated to CRISPR Medical.
[Our Cure Fund plans to invest up to one billion dollars in every startup challenging the CRISPR gene-editing space.]
[We don’t care if the probability of failure is high. Moonshots are welcome. If someone attempts true innovation, we will support the attempt itself.]