Film and Television World Life Record

Chapter 11 Harvest and Short Selling

I had just returned to the United States when my colleague Liu Feng sent me a message saying that he was on the company's layoff list.

Li Mu smiled, not caring at all. The next day, he went to the company, packed his things, completed the resignation procedures, and received his severance pay.

Department head David, who was expressionless and in a businesslike manner, was initially very serious.

He thought Li Mu would be unwilling to accept this, would make a scene, would plead for leniency, and would tell him about the difficulties he and his family were facing, how much he didn't want to lose his job, so that he would ask Li Mu to go easy on him.

However, it was very different from what he had imagined.

Li Mu appeared very calm, as if he were visiting the company, showing no interest in his job whatsoever.

David, who had originally intended to show some respect and indicate that everything was the company's decision, was still fired without hesitation after Li Mu's repeated requests, as if he had punched empty air.

Fortunately, the goal was achieved.

……

Without a job, Li Mu can finally devote all his energy to trading cryptocurrencies, and incidentally collect some unemployment benefits.

That morning, the price of BTC officially broke through $1.6, setting a new record.

Driven by this trend, dozens of cryptocurrencies worldwide have hit new highs.

Therefore, Li Mu knew that the time to clear out his inventory had finally come.

Based on real-world observations, I once read an article about the major cryptocurrency market rally in the second half of 2017, where Bitcoin's price peaked at over $1.9 before starting to decline.

Logically, with the price currently at $1.6, there's still over $3000 of upside potential before reaching the peak of $1.9. It's advisable to continue observing and maximizing profits.

However, the two worlds are different after all, and even a slight butterfly effect can have a huge impact.

Li Mu was already satisfied with the current price. It might rise further, but the risks were considerable, and he didn't want to take those risks or try to earn the last penny.

The right thing to do is to secure your profits quickly and safely.

……

Li Mu used leverage three times in total. The first time, he borrowed $99 from the platform; the second time, he borrowed $240 million; and the last time, he borrowed $670 million from the platform, increasing the leverage to 0.8 times, bringing the total value of his cryptocurrency holdings to $2720 million.

Over such a long period of time, the cryptocurrency that was worth $2720 million back then is now worth $9800 million, more than tripling in value.

Li Mu suppressed his excitement and began to liquidate his holdings and cash out.

Right now, cryptocurrencies are at their peak, with countless hot money pouring in and cryptocurrency exchanges seeing daily trading volumes exceeding tens of billions of dollars.

Such a large-scale sell-off did not cause much market volatility; the sell-off was completed in just one day.

On that day, the price of BTC even surged to $1.75 and was still heading for even higher.

As a result, the value of Li Mu's cryptocurrency holdings also soared. He not only cashed out all of it but also sold it at an even higher price, netting a total of $1.01 million.

After repaying the $1209 million in leveraged funds borrowed from the platform, along with millions of dollars in commissions, fees, and interest, Li Mu had a staggering $8800 million in cash on hand.

With $8800 million in cash, he has, in a sense, officially entered the ranks of billionaires.

……

However, this is not the end; another opportunity awaits him.

A surge in cryptocurrency prices presents an investment opportunity, as does a crash and subsequent decline.

In the United States, where the financial industry is highly developed, cryptocurrency exchanges offer both long and short selling services.

Given BTC's current growth trend, it will soon reach its peak, followed by a crash and a drop back to around a few thousand dollars. This presents a rare opportunity.

To ensure he had no worries about the future, Li Mu withdrew $1000 million from his trading account to his bank card as a safety net for his future living expenses.

Even if he loses the remaining $7800 million, with this $1000 million guarantee, he can still enjoy a comfortable life.

……

The following morning, the price of BTC officially reached $1.8, and Li Mu also began shorting. He used $7800 million as collateral, applied for 2.5 times leverage, and borrowed $1.95 million worth of cryptocurrency from the exchange.

Of these, approximately 8100 Bitcoins, worth $1.458 million, and the remaining amount, worth around $5000 million, consists of other types of cryptocurrencies.

Li Mu was well aware that compared to BTC, other cryptocurrencies had fallen even more sharply, making short selling more profitable.

However, BTC has a large enough market capitalization and a large enough number of participants, making it difficult to manipulate and reverse the downward trend. The cost is simply too high, involving hundreds of billions of dollars in capital flows; a few hundred million dollars isn't worth anyone's time to invest.

The remaining cryptocurrencies, due to their small market capitalization, will become even smaller after a future crash, making them easier to manipulate and thus more dangerous.

This is why Li Mu only used 2.5 times leverage this time; he could actually apply for higher leverage, which would have allowed him to make greater profits in the future.

However, things are different here than in the real world, especially since his involvement has introduced some variables. He is unsure whether cryptocurrencies will develop in the same way as in the real world.

We can only try to minimize the risks and be as cautious as possible.

……

The cryptocurrency market was even more active that day, with the price of BTC soaring to a record high of $1.9, the highest point Li Mu could remember. Other cryptocurrencies also hit new highs.

Taking advantage of the booming market, the borrowed cryptocurrencies were easily sold off. Due to the continuous rise in prices that day, the value of these cryptocurrencies increased significantly, and they were sold for a total of $2.12 million.

Having thus reaped this substantial benefit, Li Mu finally breathed a sigh of relief.

This was the biggest speculative opportunity he knew of in this world; once it was gone, it would be gone forever.

Fortunately, the result was good.

Currently, all $2.12 million is held in the exchange's regulatory account.

Next, simply wait for the cryptocurrency price to crash and fall, choose a suitable price, buy back the sold cryptocurrencies, return them to the exchange, and pay a certain amount of interest and transaction commission.

This short-selling operation has now been successfully completed.

If all goes well, he will reap a net profit of over 100 million US dollars.

……

Another day passed, and at noon that day, cryptocurrencies experienced a surge, with BTC reaching a high of $1.95 before starting to fall and never recovering.

Over the next few days, it continued to fall, dropping below $1.1.

Li Mu finally felt relieved, knowing that this wave was now in control.

Even if he closes his position now, he can still make a fortune.

However, he is not in a hurry, as the price of BTC has not yet bottomed out and there is still huge room for profit.

If the intended goal is achieved, this short-selling operation will make him a true billionaire.

……

Next, Li Mu had some free time. He was out of work, and cryptocurrencies still had room to fall for some time, so he didn't need to keep an eye on them every day.

I can only find other things to pass the time.

Having $1000 million in hand makes me uncomfortable if I don't spend it.

First, they repaid the $34 loan from the financial institution, redeemed the property certificate, and released the pledge.

Then, I paid off the remaining mortgage in one go, feeling debt-free and finally no longer a mortgage slave.

……

Next was changing cars. Wu Fei originally didn't plan to change, but after being severely punished by Li Mu that night, she finally shyly agreed.

So, they spent over $400,000 and each bought a Bentley Continental; Li Mu chose blue and Wu Fei chose pink.

The two luxury cars drove onto the road, attracting a lot of attention, and Wu Fei immediately took a liking to them.

……

However, human desires are endless. Having just bought a new car, Li Mu wanted to move to a bigger and more luxurious house.

With money in hand, his idea quickly turned into action. Since he had nothing else to do, he went with the real estate agent to look at houses.

As a global technology hub located in the Greater Bay Area, it boasts a large number of tech elites and wealthy individuals, resulting in a plethora of luxury homes.

After more than half a month and looking at more than a dozen luxury homes, Li Mu finally found a suitable one.

This mansion is located in San Jose, in the heart of Silicon Valley, and occupies 1.18 acres. It is surrounded by mountains and water and has a very beautiful landscape.

It has three floors above ground and one floor below ground, with a total of five bedrooms, as well as rooms specifically for servants, a professional media room, a collection room, a wine cellar...

The lawn in the yard was neatly trimmed, and there were tall palm trees, a swimming pool, and a tennis court.

The area boasts good security, environment, and education; it's located in an affluent neighborhood within the Bay Area.

The price wasn't too high, $780 million. Li Mu considered it for a while, really liked it, and readily bought it.

……

Wu Fei was initially distressed by the high price; it was more than ten times more expensive than the two-story villa they were currently living in, which surprised her.

Under Li Mu's guidance, she toured the mansion, which perfectly matched all her expectations, and she immediately fell in love with it.

After complaining a few times about Li Mu's extravagant spending, the two then moved in.

To ease Wu Fei's burden, Li Mu hired two more Filipino maids, which made her both distressed about the expense and pleasantly surprised.

That evening, she nestled coquettishly in Li Mu's arms, her face radiating happiness. She secretly marveled at how she was now a pampered rich wife, everything feeling like a dream, perfectly matching her imagination.

……

Meanwhile, during this period, Li Mu was buying a house and moving, while also pushing forward his investment and equity acquisition plan for his original company, Olkus.