"I Lost 700 Million Won Saved Over a Lifetime in Just One Year Through Stocks": YouTuber’s Confession

"You Could Lose Everything If You Overdo Stock Investments"

"Avoid Thinking, 'Am I the Only One Losing Everything?'"

A popular YouTuber with over 200,000 subscribers has shared the story of losing his hard-earned savings through stock investments, warning viewers to exercise caution.

Chongchong, who operates the fitness-focused YouTube channel ‘ChongchongTV Silver Gun,’ recently revealed in a video that he had failed in stock investing over the past year. He reported that his investment losses amounted to around 700 million won, leaving his bank balance near zero. Explaining why he chose to reveal this publicly, he said, “I felt that I could only get back on my feet by doing this.”

Chongchong began investing in stocks in 2022, believing that earned income from labor alone was not enough to purchase a house in Seoul. At first, he slowly built positions in major U.S. stocks such as Google and Apple through gradual, partial purchases. Thanks to this stable investment approach, by mid-2024, his portfolio was showing returns in the range of 100% to 150%.

YouTuber Chongchong. YouTube capture

However, as he started finding investing more interesting, Chongchong’s risk appetite increased. Last year, he invested in domestic game-themed stocks and experienced losses, and then turned to high-flying overseas stocks and high-leverage products.

Chongchong made several hundred percent returns in just a month with leveraged products of well-known tech stocks like Tesla and Palantir at that time, after which he invested a large sum into a single company and attempted short-term trades. At one point, his account showed unrealized gains of 150 million won, but after missing the opportunity to sell, this quickly turned into a 200 million won loss. Attempting to recover, he engaged in repeated short-term trades, which expanded his losses to 400 million won.

To prove the authenticity of his story, Chongchong publicly disclosed his loss account statements. The records show that in 2025 alone, he recorded losses of 450 million won and 154 million won in two separate accounts. Including additional losses incurred this year, his total cumulative losses reached 700 million won.

Total losses of Chongchong. YouTube capture

He also confessed that he was unable to enjoy daily life while being consumed by stocks. Focusing on stock screens caused him to forget small daily joys and neglect his primary work in fitness. Chongchong said, “I kept thinking about how much I could make with stocks.” After recording massive losses, he began avoiding social interactions and eventually confessed the situation to his parents and girlfriend. Wanting to give himself a chance to start over, he decided to film this video as well.

Chongchong emphasized, “You might feel like you have no money, that you’re unhappy, and when you hear that others are making money from stocks you may think, ‘Am I the only one who’s become poor?’ But you can lose not just money, but also your health, happiness, relationships, and work. If you don’t want to lose everything, you should never invest recklessly in stocks.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.