In Korea they call him the Baekmanbur-man, or the million-dollar man. Korea's first - and perhaps only - million dollar analyst surprised everyone last month when he decided to return to his old firm, four years after he'd left it.
Stephen Marvin's decision to return to Jardine Fleming as head of research was made easier by his wife - if only because she works at the firm. "That's the real reason I'm moving," jokes Marvin. "She wants to keep track of me during the day."
Most rivals knew that Marvin - far and away Seoul's top analyst - was ending his lucrative four-year contract with domestic firm Ssanyong Securities on May 31. So why did he choose to go back to his old firm? "I knew the people at JF," he comments, "It's a comfort factor. You know who your bosses are and who you'll be dealing with."
It is something of a coup for Jardine Fleming, which Marvin orginally joined in Tokyo in 1986. The firm is busy boosting its sales and research effort across Asia after some key defections last year. It will certainly add weight to the firm's Korean research, not least because Marvin doesn't believe in half measures or fudging.