A Wall Street Genius’s Final Investment Playbook

Chapter 354 : The Goose That Lays the Golden Eggs (12)

“Please give us just one day.”

The CEO of Editors asked for time, as if this wasn’t something that could be decided on the spot.

‘Well, that makes sense.’

I accepted right away.

I knew this wasn’t the kind of issue you could decide easily.

Telling someone to join hands with their competitor after the race is over—

In a way, that act makes the victory itself meaningless.

If that feels hard to grasp, just think about the war between Coca-Cola and Pepsi.

The reason both sides pour astronomical amounts of money into advertising is simple: to monopolize the market.

If one side dominates the field, the winner gets to take everything.

And that’s why they endure losses in the short term and charge in.

But now…

If you win, and yet you still have to release a joint product with the loser?

From the consumer’s perspective, the distinction between the two companies disappears.

All the money poured into differentiation, all the battles for market dominance—it all becomes meaningless in an instant.

And that’s exactly what I demanded.

‘Of course they have to agonize over this.’

But if they give up the race here, Intelligentia becomes the automatic champion.

Isn’t it better to claim at least half than to lose everything?

Plus, unlike Coca-Cola vs. Pepsi, neither side will be completely pushed out of the market in this case.

Just because it isn’t a monopoly doesn’t mean there’s no room to stand.

Of course, CRISPR gene editing involves far more variables than cola ever could.

But that wasn’t the important part right now.

What mattered immediately was…

[I… accept the conditions.]

It was the fact that Editors had no choice but to accept my proposal.

After confirming Moslyn’s message, I immediately contacted Allergan and told them to release the restraints.

Once that happened, Editors also began moving in full force.

The rabbit’s sponsor injected additional capital right away.

Editors used that money to double its clinical workforce and greatly expand its partner hospitals.

Now Moslyn began showing up in interviews everywhere.

[Are we reacting to Intelligentia? No. If we were the kind of company that simply follows others or chases competitors, we never would’ve made it this far.]

[This has nothing to do with Intelligentia or any other competitor. We have been preparing thoroughly, waiting only for regulatory signals. Funding, partners, clinical networks… all of it was already in place. We’ve simply finished the behind-the-scenes preparation and stepped up to the starting line.]

She made it sound as if results would come immediately once regulations cleared.

As soon as this news spread, Editors’ stock price shot up 12%.

But that wasn’t the end.

Intelligentia didn’t sit back either.

In truth, despite the dramatic tone of the articles, Intelligentia’s actual progress was modest.

Clinical trials inherently take time.

Even if animal studies had begun, meaningful data wouldn’t come for quite a while.

But regardless, they kept releasing new announcements every day, as if they’d found a major breakthrough.

Whether or not real progress existed didn’t matter.

What mattered was simply that they appeared to have something promising.

And so, Editors and Intelligentia—

The two companies released new announcements almost daily, and each time, the media erupted.

Speculation and rumors flooded the market nonstop.

[The biotech world and Wall Street are closely watching the movements of Editors and Intelligentia. Until just a few weeks ago, experts claimed CRISPR commercialization would take ten years. Now they’re recalculating. Why are the two companies suddenly accelerating?]

[Editors’ aggressive hiring, Intelligentia’s NIH collaboration… Both companies seem to know something. This may signal changes not only in tech progress but also in regulatory and market conditions.]

[This should be read as a warning for the entire industry. The atmosphere is: “If you don’t run now, you’ll be left behind forever.” But that sense of urgency is overheating the whole market. Whether the technology is actually ready is another matter.]

[At least investors seem convinced. Editors jumped 12%, and Intelligentia rose 8%.]

As the two leading players suddenly pushed forward, expectations that CRISPR commercialization was imminent began heating up the market.

But even in that frenzy, keen experts noticed something odd.

[But strangely, CRISPR Medical has been unusually quiet.]

[Indeed. This field is basically a three-company race… While Editors and Intelligentia accelerate, CRISPR Medical has made no official statements or new announcements. What does this mean?]

[There are usually two reasons to remain silent in such a situation. Either internal conditions are bad and they can’t move… or they’re holding a card so strong that they don’t need to make noise.]

[This race isn’t just about speed; it’s an information war. Whether CRISPR Medical’s silence is strategic or an actual red flag… we’ll have to wait and see.]

The panelists were right.

When the top two players clash like this, the one behind is usually forced to move as well.

That was exactly why I pushed the rabbits’ backs.

I calculated that once the race heated up, the CRISPR Medical turtle would be pressured into motion.

But even after all this, they stayed silent.

At this point, there had to be a reason they were holding back.

‘I don’t know what it is, but…’

Whatever it was, the way to confirm it was always the same.

I opened the black box and took out the dice.

Rattle.

The dice rolled across the table and stopped.

Fifteen.

‘This one already…?’

I had planned to use this card later.

But well—no matter.

Using it now might make things fun.

***

Meanwhile, inside the conference room at CRISPR Medical headquarters—

It looked calm on the outside, but internally, everything was in chaos.

“The shareholders are furious.”

The CFO let out a sigh.

“Editors’ stock is up 12%, but we’re down 2%. Analysts keep asking—why are we the only ones quiet?”

From the investors’ point of view, it was unbearable.

They had poured in huge amounts of money, yet the news only mentioned competitors again and again.

Major shareholders and analysts were applying pressure with one voice.

They wanted answers—how the company viewed the situation, where they stood in the race, what they planned to do next.

And it wasn’t just the CFO suffering from the pressure.

The entire board looked grim.

“Shouldn’t we announce something? At least say we’ll submit a clinical trial application by the end of the year…”

In truth, CRISPR Medical hadn’t simply been sitting still.

They also planned to begin human clinical trials soon.

They just weren’t being loud about it like the other two players—behind the scenes, they were also running at full speed.

But the CEO was firm.

“We can’t do that. We must keep this completely quiet until December.”

There was a very clear reason for this.

They planned to start their clinical trials not in the United States, but in Europe.

Even though CRISPR Medical was listed on the U.S. stock market, its headquarters were in Switzerland.

Their political network and capital strength were far deeper in Europe, and their partner, Vergeo Pharmaceuticals, also had a strong foothold in the European market.

In other words, their natural political advantages were much stronger in Europe.

On top of that—

“We have no way of knowing what might happen in the U.S. The predictable option is better.”

The United States was famous for swinging its regulatory stance whenever administrations changed.

And among them, the current Tranton administration was notorious for reversing its position at the drop of a hat.

So they believed it was better to entrust the fate of their clinical trials to Europe, where rules were clearer, rather than rely on that kind of instability.

However…

There was a major weakness to this strategy.

Europe held a far more conservative stance toward gene editing compared to the U.S.

In Europe, even genetic modification applied only to plants—GMO foods—had sparked nonstop protests for years.

Civic groups and consumers marched, calling it “a threat to the natural order,” and supermarkets often saw boycotts at the sight of a GMO label.

And now?

This time it wasn’t about crops, but human gene editing trials.

Everyone already knew how fierce the opposition would be without needing to say it.

Which was why a surprise attack was critical.

“Everything must remain top secret until the announcement.

We can’t show even the slightest movement beforehand.

Even the smallest signal will cause countless NGOs to unite and block us immediately.”

If they showed signs too early, lobbying groups would surge into action and pressure the regulators.

Of course, even a surprise announcement would bring opposition.

But they already had a plan for that.

“If we frame this as ‘Europe’s first major technological victory,’ it might just work.”

In Europe, a long-standing insecurity had been accumulating:

that they were falling behind the U.S. in science and technology.

CRISPR Medical’s tactic was to appeal directly to that regional sentiment.

They planned to present this clinical trial as Europe’s bold scientific challenge—a way of not falling behind the U.S.

Whether that logic would truly work was uncertain.

And that was why December mattered.

“If we move too early, we’re easy to shake. We must wait until December no matter what.”

There was a specific time when NGO opposition dramatically weakened.

December.

European Parliament, civic organizations, and even the media essentially shut down when everyone went on winter holiday.

Europeans take their year-end vacations seriously, no matter how passionate they are about their causes. Even the most radical activist groups disappeared from the streets during Christmas and New Year’s.

Very few organizations were willing to sacrifice their holidays for protests or lobbying.

That vacuum was exactly what CRISPR Medical intended to exploit.

“Right now, everyone’s attention is on the U.S. The two companies are tripping over each other to pressure the FDA. In this situation, it might actually be better to let them go first. While they take on all the controversy and conflict, we quietly begin trials in Europe. All while America is distracted.”

The more divided the attention, the easier the ambush.

So the current situation wasn’t entirely bad for CRISPR Medical.

But then—

Someone asked:

“But… isn’t all of this Ha Si-heon’s doing?”

The CEO frowned.

They weren’t wrong.

This entire race began because Ha Si-heon decided to back Intelligentia.

“And now his stake has increased again. It’s at 4.8%.”

If it exceeded 5%, public disclosure would be mandatory.

The fact that he was slowly accumulating shares, despite being rejected earlier, meant he still had his eyes on the company.

“If he crosses 5% before December and makes a disclosure…”

All attention would immediately turn to CRISPR Medical.

And that would completely destroy their ambush strategy.

That outcome had to be prevented at all costs.

“Why not just talk to him directly? If he understood our strategy, he might not interfere blindly—”

“A man who already sided with Intelligentia—why would he help us? He’ll almost certainly try to disrupt us instead.”

“And besides… he’s the kind of figure who draws the world’s attention the moment he gets involved. Just being associated with him is a risk.”

That was the real reason they feared Ha Si-heon.

His excessively flashy actions clashed completely with the stealth strategy CRISPR Medical needed.

The board was split over how to deal with him.

What they wanted to say was, “We don’t need your money, so please just leave us alone,” but as a publicly traded company, they had no way to stop him from buying shares.

Then, the speaker system from the strategy room activated.

[Sir, we’re connected.]

The voice that followed—

It belonged to the man known as the “Ha Si-heon specialist.”

[This is Pierce from Goldman.]