Cho Young-gu says he lost $15.5 mil. in stock investments, recalls mental health struggles
Cho Young-gu, right, appears on Kim Gu-ra’s YouTube channel. Captured from Kim’s YouTube channel
TV personality Cho Young-gu has opened up about his failed stock investments, saying he lost 2.1 billion won ($1.6 million) and even struggled with mood swings as his finances deteriorated.
Cho appeared on comedian Kim Gu-ra's YouTube channel in an episode released Wednesday. In the video, Kim said Cho had previously revealed on another program that he had nearly 3.5 billion won in unpaid loans and, combined with stock losses, was facing total financial damages of close to 5 billion won. Kim said Cho is now desperate, taking on around 20 to 30 events a month.
Cho clarified that his stock market loss alone amounted to 2.1 billion won. “I started investing in stocks in 2008, and the total I blew was exactly 2.1 billion won,” he said. “Stocks caused me a lot of stress.”
He said the impact went beyond money and into his home life. “It affected my once happy family,” he said. “When stock prices went up, I felt great, and when they fell, I got furious. As they kept fluctuating, I developed mood swings, and I ended up in a situation where even my family did not really acknowledge me.”
Cho said he pulled himself out of the slump by focusing on work and his health. “I had a lot of jobs and tried to live as diligently as I could,” he said. “Whenever I had a spare moment, I exercised.”
He traced the start of his problems to early success. “The beginning of the end was that I made a big profit on my first investment,” he said. He said that he started with 20 million won, earned 10 million won in just two weeks, and developed the illusion that “money was easy.” He added, “From 2.5 billion won, I am now down to 450 million won.”
Cho also admitted he has lent tens of billions of won to acquaintances over the years. “I believe I will get the money back someday,” he said. “I hope the people who borrowed it overcome their hardships and return it. I want them to succeed.”
This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.