Takashi Kotegawa: How BNF Turned $15,000 into $153 Million from His Bedroom

Takashi Kotegawa (aka “BNF”) turned $15,000 into $153 million trading from his Tokyo bedroom (2000-2008) using a “buy panic, sell relief” strategy. His most famous trade netted $17 million in one day from the 2005 J-Com IPO error when Mizuho Securities mistakenly sold 610,000 shares at 1 yen instead of 1 share at 610,000 yen.

Who Is Takashi Kotegawa?

Takashi Kotegawa (aka BNF or “J-Com Man”) is one of Japan’s most famous day traders and one of the most legendary figures in global trading history. He made a fortune trading stocks on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in the early 2000s, putting many Wall Street traders to shame with returns that seemed impossible. Then he largely disappeared from public view, maintaining extreme privacy with virtually no photos available on the internet.

Takashi Kotegawa started with approximately ¥1.6 million (around $13,000-$15,000) in the early 2000s when Japanese markets were highly volatile following the dot-com crash. He had no formal financial education, no teacher, no fancy tools—just curiosity and the internet. His small Tokyo apartment became his trading world: one desk, one screen (later multiple monitors), and endless observation.

In interviews, Takashi Kotegawa said he began by watching how prices moved during panic and euphoria. He wasn’t trying to predict the future; he was trying to understand human behavior. “People repeat the same mistakes in the market, every single day. Once you understand that, you don’t need predictions,” he explained.

Takashi Kotegawa’s Background

Born: 1978 (46 years old in 2024)

Starting Capital: Approximately $15,000 in early 2000s

Location: Tokyo, Japan (traded from bedroom)

Education: No formal financial education

Peak Net Worth: Over $153 million by 2008

Aliases: BNF (chatroom username), J-Com Man

His success has inspired many in the trading community, especially in Japan, where Takashi Kotegawa became a symbol of what’s possible in stock trading with the right strategy and discipline.

Takashi Kotegawa’s Core Philosophy: 80% Psychology, 20% Logic

Takashi Kotegawa believed that markets don’t move on information—they move on emotion. He often said the real skill is not in finding the next big stock, but in controlling your reactions when others lose theirs. He avoided leverage because he didn’t want fear to control his decisions. He didn’t follow gurus or predictions; he trusted data and patterns.

He didn’t chase “profit goals”; he focused on protecting his capital and mental stability. He treated trading as a mental battlefield, not a money machine. For Takashi Kotegawa, staying emotionally calm was more valuable than catching a big move. “Once you lose emotional control, the game is over,” he stated.

This psychological mastery separated Takashi Kotegawa from countless traders who possessed similar technical knowledge but lacked emotional discipline. Most traders rise and fall emotionally with every tick; he remained centered, observing the storm instead of becoming part of it. “If I get too happy or too sad, I stop trading. That means I’ve lost control,” he explained.

The Buy Panic, Sell Relief Strategy

Takashi Kotegawa’s entire strategy was built around human emotion. He didn’t try to predict; he reacted when the crowd lost balance. He studied every panic—company news, bad results, crashes—and identified when fear was overdone. His approach involved looking for stocks that fell due to market-wide panic, not because of real fundamental problems.

He entered when the crowd had already given up, when fear turned into despair. He exited when confidence came back, before greed took over again. This wasn’t just a “buy-the-dip” idea. It was about understanding how emotions cycle—fear, denial, hope, greed—and where to position himself strategically.

“When people are scared to buy, I buy. When people feel safe, I sell,” Takashi Kotegawa said. That single sentence explains his entire philosophy and why he succeeded where others failed.

Technical Indicators Takashi Kotegawa Used

25-Day Moving Average: Primary decision-making tool for entry timing

Bollinger Bands: Identifying volatility and oversold/overbought conditions

RSI Oscillator: Confirming oversold markets for entries

Takashi Kotegawa would buy stocks that were at least 20% below the 25-day moving average, then profit from short-term stock recovery. He typically closed trades during the same session or held part of the position overnight, managing risk carefully while capturing mean reversion moves.

The 2006 Livedoor Shock: Takashi Kotegawa’s Defining Moment

In 2006, Japanese markets were hit by the Livedoor scandal. Stocks crashed violently, retail traders panicked, and brokers were flooded with sell orders. But while everyone else was frozen in fear, Takashi Kotegawa saw an opportunity. He noticed fundamentally strong companies dropping for no reason other than market-wide panic.

He quietly started buying in small quantities as the market collapsed. In just a few weeks, as panic faded and rationality returned, his portfolio exploded in value. That single event turned Takashi Kotegawa from a small trader into a multi-millionaire. But even after making that money, he didn’t change his routine—same room, same computer, same focus.

“My life doesn’t need luxury. My satisfaction comes from mastering myself,” Takashi Kotegawa said. This mentality protected him from the lifestyle inflation that destroys many traders who experience sudden wealth.

The Legendary J-Com Trade: $17 Million in One Day

The year was 2005, and Takashi Kotegawa was about to close the most successful trade of his life. Japanese company J-Com Holdings had just completed its IPO, and Takashi Kotegawa was monitoring markets intensely from his bedroom. That’s how he noticed that a trader at major firm Mizuho Securities had placed a catastrophic sell order for 610,000 J-Com Holdings shares at 1 yen each.

This was a grave mistake—the Mizuho Securities trader originally intended to sell 1 share at 610,000 yen. This enormous error sent the company’s stock into steep decline. At the bottom, Takashi Kotegawa purchased 7,100 shares, and on the subsequent recovery, he made $17 million (worth over $400 million in today’s purchasing power) on this single trade in one day.

This trade earned Takashi Kotegawa the nickname “J-Com Man” and cemented his legend status. However, it’s important to note that profit of such astronomical proportions could only be generated thanks to enormous luck on Kotegawa’s side and a huge mistake by the seller. Today, similar errors are prevented by modern trading systems with multiple confirmation layers.

Takashi Kotegawa’s Daily Routine: Discipline Behind Success

Takashi Kotegawa treated trading like a profession, not a gamble. He started his day by reviewing past trades—not charts—noting where he got emotional, not just where he lost money. He avoided media noise: no financial TV, no social chatter, no analyst predictions. He kept his body healthy and avoided stress, believing mental sharpness required physical balance.

His trading was so precise that he could go days without taking a trade. For Takashi Kotegawa, “No trade is also a trade.” He believed the market rewards patience, not activity. This contrasted sharply with most retail traders who feel compelled to trade constantly, often destroying their accounts through overtrading.

His meticulous approach involved:

Daily Trading Discipline

· Morning review of previous trades focusing on emotional responses

· Physical exercise and healthy meals maintaining mental clarity

· Market observation without pressure to execute trades

· Entry only when all criteria aligned perfectly

· Flat emotional state regardless of profit or loss

Takashi Kotegawa never celebrated big wins and never took revenge trades after losses. He kept emotions flat—whether profit or loss, his behavior stayed the same. This emotional detachment is what separated him from typical traders who let euphoria and despair drive irrational decisions.

Why Takashi Kotegawa Never Lost Control: Philosophy of Detachment

Takashi Kotegawa viewed money as a tool, not a goal. He said that once you start trading “for money,” you lose clarity. Money was the byproduct of good decision-making, not the purpose of it. This philosophical approach protected him from the greed and fear cycles that destroy most traders.

He never celebrated big wins and never took revenge trades after losses. His behavior stayed consistent regardless of outcomes. This emotional equilibrium is extraordinarily rare among traders, who typically experience psychological highs after profits and lows after losses.

“If I get too happy or too sad, I stop trading. That means I’ve lost control,” Takashi Kotegawa explained. This self-awareness and willingness to step away when emotionally compromised prevented the spiral many traders experience where emotional trading leads to larger losses, which creates more emotional trading.

Takashi Kotegawa’s Modest Lifestyle Despite Massive Wealth

Takashi Kotegawa is also a role model outside the trading platform. Although he managed to earn sums that would send most people into permanent retirement, he remained exceptionally modest. He keeps himself out of the spotlight and gives virtually no interviews—one reason why little is known about him and few pictures exist on the internet.

He doesn’t flaunt his wealth, reportedly doesn’t buy expensive cars or watches, and maintains a simple lifestyle. The only major investment in his personal comfort was purchasing a new apartment (his bedroom apparently became too small for his expanded monitor setup). Takashi Kotegawa is a clear example of a trader who loves trading for its own sake, not primarily for money, which he views merely as a measure of success.

This modest approach to wealth distinguishes Takashi Kotegawa from flashy traders who use profits to fund lavish lifestyles. By maintaining discipline in lifestyle as in trading, he avoided the pitfalls of sudden wealth that have destroyed many successful traders through expensive habits, poor investments, or attracting unwanted attention.

Lessons from Takashi Kotegawa for Modern Traders

Takashi Kotegawa’s legacy offers timeless principles applicable to today’s markets:

Trading Is Psychological Warfare: Numbers don’t matter if emotions control your decisions. Mastering your reactions matters more than mastering any technical strategy.

Capital Protection Is First Profit: Takashi Kotegawa never let ego force him to risk everything for quick gains. Surviving bad periods enables participation in good periods.

Patience Is the Real Edge: He could wait days for perfect entry, then strike once without hesitation. Most traders lose money through impatience, not through wrong analysis.

Ignore the Noise: He didn’t care what analysts said or where markets “should” go. He traded what he saw, not what he hoped.

You don’t need to trade like Takashi Kotegawa to be successful, but you can learn to think like him. Your biggest goal in trading should be to master your reactions, not predict the market. Money will follow when you stop chasing it.

FAQ

How did Takashi Kotegawa make his money?

Takashi Kotegawa made $153 million primarily through scalping and swing trading on the Tokyo Stock Exchange from 2000-2008, starting with just $15,000. His strategy focused on buying panic and selling relief using technical indicators like 25-day moving averages, Bollinger Bands, and RSI.

What was Takashi Kotegawa’s most famous trade?

The J-Com trade in 2005 is Takashi Kotegawa’s most legendary. When Mizuho Securities mistakenly sold 610,000 shares at 1 yen instead of 1 share at 610,000 yen, he bought 7,100 shares at the bottom and made $17 million in one day when the error was corrected.

Is Takashi Kotegawa still trading?

Takashi Kotegawa maintains extreme privacy and gives virtually no interviews or public appearances. While there’s speculation he continues trading, no recent public information confirms his current activities. He’s believed to have potentially multiplied his wealth further given market developments.

What indicators did Takashi Kotegawa use?

Takashi Kotegawa primarily used the 25-day moving average for entry decisions, Bollinger Bands for volatility assessment, and RSI oscillator for confirming oversold conditions. He bought stocks at least 20% below their 25-day moving average during market panics.

Does Takashi Kotegawa teach trading courses?

No, Takashi Kotegawa does not offer trading courses or maintain any public educational presence. He has no social media accounts, blogs, or websites. His strategies are known primarily through interviews and analysis by trading educators studying his approach.

What is Takashi Kotegawa’s net worth now?

Takashi Kotegawa’s net worth was estimated at over $153 million by 2008. Given market developments since then and assuming he continued trading, his wealth has likely grown substantially, though exact current figures are unknown due to his extreme privacy.