If you follow these five mottos, you’re either wealthy or have the potential to become wealthy, if Samsung Securities department head Choi Mun-hee, Tong Yang Investment Bank vice president Lee Suk-cheol, Shinhan Bank team head Kim Dong-gyun and Hana Bank department head Kil Gi-hyeon are to be believed -- and they are, after all, considered among the best private bankers in Korea. The four say these are the common qualities of Korea’s wealthy, a kind of “DNA of the rich.”

First, “Succeed in your field.” It’s rare to become rich by pursuing money alone. Most rich people are passionate about their work and succeed in their fields, while success is the gift of seed money and networking -- the biggest asset in financing.

One private banker recalls, “I had a customer who said before the 2002 presidential election that if Roh Moo-hyun won, the Pangyo area would be hot, but if Lee Hoi-chang won, the Hanam area would be hot. I was confused at the time, but in the end, he was right.” The customer, who ran a small to mid-sized firm, had heard through networking where the investment directions of the respective camps were headed.

“Read the exact trends.” The wealthy read social changes and are the first to ride the trends. “I had a customer who signed up for long-term fixed interest rate products of banks and insurance companies during the double-digit interest days prior to the financial crisis. Looking at Japan’s hyper-low interest phenomenon, he predicted that the era of low interest rates was coming to Korea as well.”

“They listen a lot, but don’t believe what they hear easily.” “When I first invest, I walk the dirt paths, and when I leave, I take the tarmac road.” So said one wealthy real estate investor. A grandmother in her 70s said when she gets an investment suggestion, she intentionally takes the subway or bus there, to get an idea of the traffic. In the local real estate agent’s office, she patiently sits and listens by phone to the agent while guessing the sales price and bidding price of the property. Only then does she decide to invest.

“Health is the No. 1 seed money.” One customer would shoot a 71 round of golf at age 71. In order to set up listening posts all around, collect information, keep tons of appointments and minutely manage a huge portfolio, you need physical strength.

“Even if you have to take a slight loss, keep your credibility.” The wealthy always keep their promises. One banker said, “We told one client who was going to do a deal with another company to switch to us because we’d give him higher interest, but he turned us down, saying he couldn’t break a promise for a few pennies more.” The wealthy are people who have realized that to keep small promises and protect your credibility brings more returns in the long run.

(Lee Gil-seong, atticus@chosun.com )