7 Brutal Money Truths From Squid Game 3’s Shocking Finale

This post was originally posted on Planner Bee.

Squid Game Season 3 concludes with a chilling and thought-provoking finale. Gi-hun, our troubled protagonist, makes the ultimate sacrifice to save Jun-hee’s newborn. In doing so, he effectively hands over the ₩45.6 billion prize to a child who will never know the horrors of the game. While the child is the technical “winner”, the true reward is simply the chance to live.

At the same time, the brutal games and their sinister recruitment cycle continue under new leadership. The system of exploitation doesn’t end, it simply changes shape.

Beyond the suspense and violence, Season 3 offers profound financial and philosophical insights. Through each characters’ suffering, the show explores the relationship between money, morality, and survival in a society warped by deep inequality.

Here are 7 money lessons that challenge the way we think about wealth today.

1. Money needs purpose and ethics

Gi-hun’s decision to walk away from victory and give up his life for someone else is a radical act in a world obsessed with winning. He could have walked away rich, traumatised but still alive. Instead, he reclaims his humanity by choosing compassion over wealth. His journey moves from survival to purpose.

Lesson: In your own financial life, ask yourself: is the money you’re chasing aligned with your values? A career, investment, or business deal might bring financial gain but cost you your integrity. Aim to build wealth that supports your goals, not one that undermines who you are.

2. Wealth and unchecked power can distort systems

Season 3 intensifies its focus on the ultra-wealthy. The VIPs are no longer just spectators, they are redesigning the games, deciding the cruelty, and turning it into their own form of entertainment. Creator Hwang Dong-hyuk even draws parallels between these elites and real-world tech moguls like Elon Musk, suggesting that those with the most wealth often wield the greatest (and most dangerous) influence.

Lesson: Whether in markets, politics, or business, be aware of those with too much power and too few limits. Their decisions can destabilise systems for personal gain. From market manipulation to corporate lobbying, remember that transparency and accountability are essential to protecting people from exploitation.

3. Human capital outshines financial capital

Although Jun-hee’s baby inherits the massive prize, she lacks the knowledge, guidance, and support needed to manage or protect it. Without care, education, and moral grounding, wealth can quickly become a ticking time bomb. Gi-hun’s death is not just a sacrifice, it’s an investment in someone else’s potential future.

Lesson: Don’t focus solely on building financial assets. Invest in your skills, relationships, health, and emotional awareness. These are the foundations that protect and grow financial assets. Money can vanish, but personal growth compounds over time.

4. Exploitation often continues in new forms

Even after Gi-hun’s death, the closing scenes reveal that the Squid Game continues, now under a new recruiter. The same patterns of coercion, desperation, and manipulation persist. Systems built on oppression rarely disappear, they tend to evolve rather than end.

Lesson: Exploitative financial practices, like payday lending, debt traps, or insecure gig work don’t disappear just because they’re exposed. They are often rebranded and return in different forms. Avoiding them requires education, regulation, and constant awareness.

5. Trauma affects financial decisions

Throughout Season 3, Gi-hun’s actions are deeply shaped by guilt, grief, and trauma. His past weighs heavily on him, and he is no longer playing to win but to redeem himself. This emotional burden nearly leads to his downfall before he ultimately reclaims purpose through sacrifice.

Lesson: Strong emotions, such as grief, debt, or stress, can cloud judgment and lead to poor financial decisions. That’s why it’s essential to pause, seek counsel, and delay major financial choices during periods of emotional volatility. Mental clarity is as valuable as any budget or spreadsheet.

Read more: Understanding Behavioural Finance: How Psychology Influences Decisions in Investment

6. True risk isn’t always monetary

In the “Sky Squid Game” sequence, the stakes are no longer measured in money, but in lives. Gi-hun’s choice to prioritise a baby’s life over his own reframes the definition of risk entirely. For him, the greater loss would have been compromising his values, not his finances.

Lesson: Financial decisions may feel like high-stakes games, but the real danger lies in sacrificing your well-being, relationships, or ethics in the process. A higher income isn’t worth it if it comes at the cost of your well-being or personal values.

7. Investing in the next generation

Jun-hee’s child, now in possession of a fortune she cannot yet understand, represents more than innocence. She symbolises the next generation, inheriting the consequences of today’s choices. Gi-hun’s sacrifice isn’t just for one life, but it’s about creating a future where that life has a chance to be different.

Lesson: Think long-term with your money. Ethical choices, saving, and long-term planning all influence what the next generation receives, not only in terms of money, but in values, opportunities, and stability. Real generational wealth includes the tools and principles needed to thrive.

When the prize isn’t worth the price

The ending of Season 3 strips away any illusion that money alone can redeem a broken world. Gi-hun’s death is both tragic and enlightening. It forces viewers to reconsider what winning truly means. The series suggests that the most valuable things, compassion, dignity, and selflessness, can’t be bought. Pursuing wealth without purpose often leads to ruin.

The final image of a child inheriting both immense wealth and deep vulnerability drives home the show’s core message: money is a tool, not a solution. Its worth depends on how we use it, not how much we have.

In the end, as Squid Game Season 3 makes clear, sometimes harshly, sometimes movingly, the real prize isn’t money. It’s what we choose to live for, and what we are prepared to give up for something greater.

Read more: 7 Key Money Lessons From Squid Game 2