Investment Banker

The Opportunistic Survivor

In the aftermath of Japan's destruction, while millions mourned and economies collapsed, a select few found opportunity in the chaos. The Gold Level investment banker represents this darker side of disaster capitalism - the individuals who not only survive catastrophe but thrive because of it, building careers on the ruins of others' lives.

Professional Position

Before the Day Japan Died, the banker occupied a comfortable but unremarkable position in Horizon City's financial hierarchy:

• Workplace: Office on Gold Level with a window view of the city
• Role: Investment banker evaluating proposals for ventures on Red Level
• Status: Mid-level financial professional with upward aspirations
• Connections: Integrated into Gold Level's financial networks, including colleagues like Verdis

This position gave him a front-row seat to the economic devastation that followed Japan's destruction, while simultaneously insulating him from the worst physical dangers faced by those on lower levels.

Witnessing Financial Collapse

The banker's account provides a unique window into the immediate financial consequences of Neo-Tokyo's destruction:

• Market Reaction: Stock markets "crashed harder than a Hyperjet flying into a skyscraper"
• Algorithmic Chaos: Trading bots automatically buying assets at less than 10% of expected price
• Ownership Erasure: Computers systematically wiping out Japanese ownership from markets
• Flash Crash: Markets transforming from normal operation to "completely bat-shit crazy, fortune destroying machine" in one one-hundredth of a second
• Human Cost: Hedge fund managers committing suicide by jumping from buildings
• Mass Suicide: Over 100,000 Japanese nationals in Horizon City committing suicide in what became known as "Seppuku Tuesday"

This eyewitness account reveals how the digital interconnection of global financial systems created a cascade of automated destruction that amplified the physical devastation in Japan.

Currency Collapse

Beyond the stock market, the banker observed the broader economic meltdown affecting everyday life:

• Payment Systems Failure: CredChips stopping work, ATMs and ChequeIts not registering accounts
• Banking Collapse: First Bank of Horizon revealed as a front for Neo-Tokyo operations
• Currency Hyperinflation: The yen becoming "effectively worthless" as unclaimed assets were marked for auction
• Infrastructure Breakdown: Basic financial transactions becoming impossible, threatening societal collapse

This situation created the conditions for what the banker describes as Benjiro's "stroke of financial genius" - the introduction of the Ben currency.

Benjiro's Intervention

The banker's perspective on Benjiro's financial rescue operation reveals both admiration and self-interest:

• Currency Replacement: The introduction of the Ben to replace the worthless yen
• Hedge Fund Backing: The Ben backed by a hedge fund based on the value of other world currencies
• Exchange Stability: Fixed exchange rates establishing the Ben's value relative to other global currencies
• Financial Wizardry: Recognition of Benjiro's preparation and foresight in having resources ready
• Personal Gratitude: Appreciation framed primarily in terms of how it benefited the banker personally

This account provides insight into how Benjiro consolidated power and loyalty through financial means, creating a debt-based relationship with Horizon City's citizens that went beyond mere governance.

Personal Benefit

Perhaps the most revealing aspect of the banker's story is his candid description of how he personally benefited from the catastrophe:

• Career Advancement: Receiving a promotion when his boss committed suicide
• Financial Gain: Getting a raise "when the dust had settled"
• Casual Callousness: Describing his boss's suicide and his clone's subsequent suicide as something that "all worked out for me in the end"
• Selective Gratitude: Thanking Benjiro primarily because the intervention preserved his own lifestyle

This self-centered perspective highlights how disasters can create winners alongside losers, with some individuals finding opportunity in circumstances that destroy others.

Moral Perspective

The banker's narrative reveals a particular moral worldview shaped by financial thinking:

• Transactional Relationships: Viewing human connections primarily in terms of their utility
• Emotional Detachment: Describing suicides and economic devastation with clinical distance
• Hierarchical Thinking: Implicit acceptance of a system where some prosper while others perish
• Debt-Based Morality: Framing gratitude to Benjiro in terms of literal debt ("we're in his debt. Literally.")
• Survival Pragmatism: Valuing practical outcomes over ethical considerations

This moral framework allows him to navigate catastrophe without being overwhelmed by empathy or ethical qualms, focusing instead on personal advantage and survival.

Historical Significance

Despite his self-centered perspective, the banker provides valuable historical insights:

• Economic Mechanics: Detailed description of how financial systems collapsed
• Intervention Timeline: Account of how quickly Benjiro implemented the Ben currency
• Recovery Pattern: Evidence of how Gold Level stabilized while Red Level continued to experience shortages
• Power Consolidation: Illustration of how Benjiro's financial intervention created dependency and loyalty
• Class Disparities: Implicit acknowledgment of how the crisis affected different levels differently

These observations help explain how Horizon City maintained stability while the rest of the world descended into war, and how Benjiro consolidated his control through economic means rather than military force.

In the final analysis, the banker represents a particular type of survivor - one who not only weathers catastrophe but finds ways to thrive because of it, building a career on the economic ruins left by others' destruction. His story serves as a reminder that in even the most devastating circumstances, some individuals will find ways to profit from others' misfortune, viewing global tragedy through the narrow lens of personal opportunity.