I Became the Youngest Daughter of a Chaebol Family-Chapter 97: Blackjack (1)

Quite some time had passed, so I revisited my strategy.

My original plan was simple:

1. Connect with the Jewish-American community.

2. Accuse him of fraud and figure out how to extract money.

Step 1 was easy. Once Schindler’s List premiered around mid-1993, Spielberg would earn enormous respect among Jews. I could easily insert myself into those circles.

But... step 2 was a bit harder.

Even claiming fraud was tricky. People would believe it if Director Spielberg said it, but I wasn’t Spielberg. I couldn’t persuade anyone without evidence.

Of course, there was a basis I could use. Let’s try to retrace the logic from the past...

“Yeah, that’s right. If it’s not a bull market, you’re essentially investing in a bear market. It’s not like the stock market only goes up, right?”

“But Ponzi schemes never disclose their investment portfolios. And who knows if Madoff is even investing in the U.S. or Europe?”

“Exactly. That’s why this part is the most important.”

The idea was to ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) provoke Alpha Fund into going on the offensive, starting a fight. If I could expose their portfolio to the SEC, then...

After baiting them into a lawsuit and raising suspicions about a Ponzi scheme, I’d lead Madoff into revealing something like, “Actually, we don’t invest in the U.S.—we invest in Europe.” Then prove mathematically that his returns were impossible (which, in a past life, someone literally did). And that would be the end.

It’s a crude and clumsy tactic, but it’s logical. The easiest way to expose a Ponzi scheme is to prove that no money is actually being invested.

If I traced every funding line back, I’d probably find something off in the flow of money through his fund.

But... this time, Spielberg had established a historical foundation.

“You said the foundation funds are being managed now, right? I heard something about that.”

“Um, who might you be...”

Madoff looked flustered when I suddenly approached him like we were old acquaintances. But... he knew my name.

“Under the name Ha-yeon, I received compensation from Mr. Madoff’s fund a while back. It’s been about six months, I think.”

Madoff hesitated briefly, then responded, thinking it over.

“Ah! You’re the owner of the $30,000 account? I didn’t expect such a young lady. My apologies for not recognizing you.”

To Madoff’s fund, $30,000 was a significant sum. These days, I usually invested in units of ten million dollars, so...

“Oh, it’s fine. I didn’t think you’d remember me anyway, but your memory is impressive.”

I smiled faintly and gently sipped my drink.

***

Using a foundation rather than the original plan made things even easier.

It’s different when a foundation expresses gratitude on behalf of someone else. If it were a clean, properly run fund, there’d be no reason to reject them—but this case was different.

“Let’s crack this open.”

I approached the heart of the party. There were obviously wealthy Jewish donors gathered here... and these were the same people acting as trustees of the foundation.

Wait—wasn’t this a nonprofit foundation? And yet they just handed out money like it was candy?

That would constitute misconduct.

Nonprofits also manage assets, and of course, have a board of directors.

Incidentally, one of those board members was Ha Yeong-il. He wasn’t a Jew, which might seem like a problem for a foundation like this, but he’d been appointed precisely as a neutral outsider.

Earlier someone mentioned this wasn’t just a Jewish organization—it was meant to be a global foundation. That made Ha Yeong-il a perfect symbolic choice.

Technically, he was on the investment committee or something like that... but I just needed his endorsement, so it didn’t matter.

“Oh, the Alpha Fund director? That’s quite a distinguished title.”

“Haha, nothing much. I’m just here in a non-voting capacity this time, so feel free to enjoy yourself.”

I said it as naturally as possible.

“That’s right. This time the fund being used is Madoff’s, right?”

“Huh... But was Madoff’s fund really selected?”

Another board member looked uncertain, as if the thought had just struck them. They looked over at Ha Yeong-il, who responded with a bit of discomfort.

“Normally, it wouldn’t be allowed. Mr. Madoff is a donor to this foundation. Technically, someone with a conflict of interest shouldn’t be eligible... but on Wall Street, that sort of thing is rather common.”

Then Ha Yeong-il glanced at me and subtly gave a signal.

“Do any of the other board members know anything about this? For example, whether someone proposed allocating the foundation’s funds to Madoff’s fund?”

“...Isn’t that against the rules?”

“It’s fine. Madoff’s fund isn’t some minor operation. Depending on when he made the donation, the situation can differ.”

“Ah, I see. So the key is whether the foundation invested first, or whether Madoff donated first... that makes sense. I suppose it would be like retroactive conflict of interest.”

The skeptical board member nodded thoughtfully.

“But we still have to be thorough, don’t we? No one wants to be scrutinized later for making a careless call.”

Smile.

“Um... Then how about this? Up to $3 million, we proceed with normal operations. If the fund exceeds that amount, we initiate an audit.”

–Snap.

Smiling gently, I proposed the idea as if it had just come to me.

“Three million dollars sounds reasonable. But isn’t that a bit high?”

“Come now, there’s no need for that between us. With inflation, that’s not even much in the 21st century. If we make the baseline too low—say, $10,000—we’d have to run audits every time someone made a contribution. Then who would even want to manage this money?”

“...Well, it seems fine to me. It’s not a personal investment—it’s under the foundation’s name. We also need to think about optics.”

My proposal passed through the board meeting far too easily. And I wasn’t even a board member.

Once the total assets managed through Madoff’s fund exceeded $3 million, the board would appoint a separate audit team to evaluate the fund.

That was the essence of my suggestion.

“Easy.”

If the fund ballooned and collapsed, that audit team would expose the fraud... Didn’t I say that a market crash is what reveals where the money truly went?

If you can’t make someone trip over a trap, then just flood the path until they drown.

Until the moment the person gasping for air falls facedown in the mud.

***

Like a prophet bearing divine truth, Madoff heard whispers likening his charity appearance to a saint’s last stand.

He was told that once more than $3 million was invested, the fund would be closely audited.

‘Damn it, why is Ha-yeon pulling this now...!’

Madoff grimaced. Sure, getting more money was nice—but this wasn’t just a gift.

This was money granted under the condition of external audit.

If it were any other case, he could’ve just pocketed it quietly. On Wall Street, even the biggest sharks had a few unwritten rules—but this was different.

And foundation money—especially this time—was especially unique.

All Jews shared the generational trauma of the Holocaust. If that historical foundation chose his fund as their official investment vehicle, there would be no room to say no.

Likewise, refusing an audit after receiving $3 million would be equally unacceptable.

Could he really just say, “I’ll reject the audit for the sake of convenience”? In front of a room filled with the wealthiest Jews?

He’d be fine. That was how Madoff calmed himself with deep breaths.

So far, the fund had only raised around $2 million. It wouldn’t exceed three that easily. After all, foundations preferred spreading funds across many assets—not focusing all on one.

But if $3 million did come in...

Then he would have to be more careful than ever.

.

.

.

And just like that, it became 1993.

Slowly, the foundation’s donations began accumulating.

$2.3 million.

$2.4 million.

$2.5 million...

Thankfully, the total amount collected in Madoff’s fund stopped there. If it hadn’t been for the naive donors, it might have been less.

‘It’s fine. As long as I make it through this year, I can discreetly close off the fund’s outflows. Somehow...’

Madoff, eyes bloodshot, focused all his energy on laundering the money.

To prepare for any potential exposure of funding links, he transferred the money stashed at JP Morgan—who offered discreet private banking services—to BBB (Berlin-Bearings Bank) and began urging the foundation to invest elsewhere directly.

The idea of investing the money in another location—especially having it directed away from his Alpha Fund cronies—infuriated him. But he had no choice.

He kept repeating to himself: Just one more time... just one more. How many times had he clung to that desperate, wavering hope? It continued for several months.

Until the dreaded June of 1993 approached.

As for the early-than-expected premiere of Schindler’s List... to be honest, I hadn’t given it much thought.

He’s donating all his royalties? Sure, Director Spielberg is admirable—but really, who among us Jews is going to sit through a hundred-minute historical film?

Everyone was thinking the same thing. Including Madoff.

Flap.

One morning’s newspaper.

Madoff’s hand trembled.

[Schindler’s List tops the world box office! Smashing success, following Jurassic Park!]

[No longer just a commercial director—Spielberg completes his magnum opus, applause erupts...]

[Steven Spielberg: “There was never a choice. Donating all my royalties was the only path. That so many people around the world were moved by this story... I’m just grateful.” – Continued donations to the Holocaust History Foundation...]

What... what was this?

The first month’s global box office revenue from Schindler’s List...

Approximately $200 million.

Director Spielberg, moved by the response, added a further $30 million of his personal royalties as donation.

Madoff was left utterly stunned.

So much money... far too much.