Bitcoin is, of course, the biggest cryptocurrency in the world right now. It has been, for well over a decade. And this isn’t just a first mover advantage that it enjoys. It’s a fundamentally solid asset, and the biggest disruption to our financial systems we’ve ever seen. Bitcoin is an asset that is not controlled by any central entity, that is secure, international and fungible. Demand for it has continued to shoot up while its supply has only dwindled, causing the price to go up disproportionately in a short period of time, thus attracting more investors.
The Sudden Surge in Bitcoin Price
Bitcoin has been booming over the last few months and hit highs of over $60,000 in March, surpassing a market capitalization of $1 trillion for the first time. The spike in its prices was heavily fueled by the announcement of Elon Musk, stating that his company Tesla had invested $1.5bn in the cryptocurrency, on 8 February.
But these are attributes that attract early investors. What about those who have been trading crypto for a long time? How many have been part of Bitcoin’s journey from the start? And how much did they make?
Thousands of people started investing in the cryptocurrency after Elon Musk’s entry and Bitcoin’s subsequent breaking of the $50,000 barrier. But what about people who have been investing for years? A new report has revealed a list of top billionaires in 2021, who have been cashing in on Bitcoin’s rise. Let’s check out some of the most famous faces in the Bitcoin traders’ hall of fame.
Top Bitcoin traders
1. Roger Ver
The famous Bitcoin Jesus, as he used to be called, Roger Ver was born in San Jose, California. He was one of Bitcoin’s earliest advocates and due to early investments in Bitcoin startups and of course, Bitcoin itself, he made a fortune of $520 million. He became a fan of Bitcoin due to its economic freedom from traditional currencies and banking systems. His advocacy got him the name ‘Bitcoin Jesus’ amongst cryptocurrency trading. While he has made millions through trading, he has also given large amounts of money to charity as well. He is now firmly backing Bitcoin Cash.
2. Charlie Shrem
Charlie Shrem from Brooklyn, New York, is the most influential Bitcoin millionaire. Shrem was clever enough to purchase large quantities of bitcoin before the prices exploded. This, along with other investments, saw him earn $450 millions.
With the money that he had made, he also founded BitInstant alongside Roger Ver. Unfortunately, he ended up in prison for being guilty of money laundering for the deep web marketplace, The Silk Road. After his release from jail, he immediately got back to business and launched Intellisys Capital, which sells investment portfolios in Blockchain companies.
3. Huai Yang
As early as 2017, Chinese Trader Huai Yang was reportedly making 1 million Yuan trading bitcoin every month (roughly $150K). Based in Beijing, Yang is a pure Bitcoin trader, not spending his time on promoting the idea of cryptocurrencies, but merely taking advantage of price movements. Very likely, he’d be trading crypto derivatives to rake in his moolah.
4. Eddy Zillan
Possibly the most unlikely story on this list, Eddy Zillan was too young to open a trading account when he decided to get into Bitcoin. He signed up on Coinbase anyway at the age of 15, and interestingly enough, made his first purchase of $100 not on Bitcoin, but on Ethereum. Within hours, he’d made $10. “I thought, ‘Wow, I just made a 10% return in a day. That’s crazy,'” he said in a BusinessInsider interview.
He then began to pour more into crypto trading. Thousands more. First $1000, then $5000, and $6000. After a year of trading, his account balance stood at $350,000. In parallel, he began reading up on cryptocurrencies and polished his crypto trading skills.
Today, his portfolio is worth well over a million dollars.
5. Jered Kenna
It wouldn’t be wrong to say that Bitcoin attracts people from all streams. Jered Kenna is from US Marines. He made millions on Bitcoin when he purchased the first batch for just 20 cents each. He tasted his first success when he sold these coins for $200 each.
He then went on to explore dark Bitcoin mining pools, where individuals could anonymously invest in digital currency. He is also well known in the cryptocurrency circle for his famous 2010 reformatting of a hard drive that got him to lose around $200,000 in bitcoins.
6. The Winklevoss Twins
More investors than traders, strictly speaking, these are the famous Bitcoin celebrities that do deserve a spot on this list. While studying at Harvard, they produced a forerunner of Facebook called ConnectU. Later, they went on to sue Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg in the court for stealing their idea for his site. They were even portrayed in the Oscar-winning film The Social Network.
Right after this, they quickly spotted the potential of Bitcoin and invested heavily in it, upto $11 million. Apart from investing in the bitcoin currency, they have even funded several Bitcoin based companies such as BitInstant and Winkdex. All these endeavours have led them to bag enormous amounts of money, and not to forget, their $150 million in bitcoins.
These people didn’t just hit a jackpot when they invested in Bitcoins and turned into millionaires. Their success was the result of careful trading, and intelligent moves based on the market. Here are some tips to help you invest better.
- Keep it safe and secure.
- Start small, rather than big.
- Once you’ve mastered the basics, use crypto derivatives to both hedge your portoflio, and leverage your bets!
We’re happy to help, on Delta Exchange.
