Andy Lee: Lost brother's 50 million won savings in crypto after family debt hit 10 billion won

Science communicator Andy Lee has candidly shared his journey of overcoming a 10 billion won family debt, consecutive investment failures, and severe depression. In particular, he confessed his most regrettable moment: losing even the 50 million won in savings his younger brother had accumulated during military service due to failed investments.

Appearing on tvN's "You Quiz on the Block" broadcast on the 8th, Lee revealed the family history hidden behind his brilliant academic achievements.

During the broadcast, it was noted that Lee graduated at the top of his class from the Department of Biotechnology at the Catholic University of Korea, graduating a year early, and then entered the Seoul National University Graduate School of Medicine. He achieved such outstanding results that he was selected for a top-tier domestic scholarship program, receiving 100 million won in scholarship funds. Furthermore, he was walking the path of a promising young scientist, publishing research papers in world-renowned academic journals.

However, unlike his academic achievements, an unbearable ordeal struck his family.

Lee opened up by saying, "My father was defrauded, which resulted in a debt of about 10 billion won for our family."

Recalling those times, he said, "My father was a capable scientist, but he was defrauded of billions of won, and because he also acted as a guarantor, the debt snowballed. In an instant, the lives of all our family members changed completely."

He continued, "My mother, a Korean language teacher, had to use most of her salary and the money she had saved over 40 years just to pay the interest, not even the principal. My younger brother's situation also became so difficult that he had to give up going to university."

To help his family, he entered graduate school and supported himself through scholarships.

"To save on living expenses, I didn't even go on MT trips, and my monthly living expenses were less than 50,000 won," Lee said. "I only thought about the necessity of saving money at all costs."

After saving so desperately, he managed to accumulate about 400 million won in his late 20s, but as there was no sign of the family debt decreasing, he became impatient.

He revealed, "Driven by the thought that I had to make money quickly, I jumped into stock investing. I didn't invest in stable blue-chip stocks but in theme stocks, which eventually led to losing my entire fortune when they were delisted."

The despair did not end there.

The person who reached out to him after he lost everything was none other than his younger brother.

"I cried in front of my brother for the first time while explaining the situation," Lee said. "My brother handed me the 50 million won in savings he had accumulated during his military service without any hesitation."

However, he could not even protect that trust.

Lee expressed deep self-reproach, saying, "I should have used that money to start over, but in my impatience, I invested in crypto and lost everything again."

The consecutive failures eventually led to a mental breaking point.

Recalling the difficult times, he said, "I was so depressed that I cut myself off from the world. I didn't even go to graduate school, and trash piled up in my tiny goshiwon room so much that there was no room to step. I literally lived like a living corpse."

He then tearfully added, "My mother came and cleaned my room without saying a word. Seeing that, I thought I had to live again. I was able to stand up again because I had my family."

After a long period of effort, the family finally regained hope.

"Last year, our family finally cleared the entire 10 billion won debt," Lee said. "The four of us held each other and cried for a long time."

He shared his overwhelming emotions, saying, "I was finally able to provide a car and a house for my parents. I was happiest because I could repay my family even just a little."

Lee's confession, in which he unreservedly revealed his family's sacrifice and his own failures, went beyond a simple success story, leaving a deep resonance with viewers as a sincere life story of a person who rose again amidst frustration.