Madness That Became a Legend

A story that today sounds like a legend, but in 2014 looked like pure madness.

In 2014, Changpeng Zhao (CZ), the future founder of Binance, made a decision that would have seemed like financial suicide to most people. He sold his apartment and exchanged real estate for 1,500 bitcoins. At that time, the price of one BTC was around $600, and the entire deal was valued at approximately $900,000. Even by the standards of that time, it was an extremely risky move: bitcoin was considered a niche experiment for geeks, the market was illiquid, regulation did not exist, and drops of 50-80% were considered normal.

The family’s reaction was completely predictable. Zhao’s mother called him crazy and a “fool,” not understanding how one could exchange a real apartment for some “magical internet money” that cannot be touched, registered, or rented out. From the point of view of classical thinking, she was absolutely right: real estate is a hard asset, while bitcoin is incomprehensible code on the internet with no guarantees or protection.

But CZ looked at the situation differently. Even then, he believed not just in price growth, but in the very idea of decentralized money, a global financial system without intermediaries and borders. He understood that bitcoin was not an investment in the style of “buy low, sell high,” but a bet on a new financial order. In essence, he exchanged the stability of the present for a potential future.

Time passed, and the story took a sharp turn. Today, that same apartment, by market estimates, would be worth about $1.5 million. Not bad, reliable, solid. But 1,500 BTC today is already around $188 million. The difference is not just in the numbers, but in the scale of thinking.

It is important to understand: this is not a story of “getting lucky.” This is a story about a high concentration of risk, psychological resilience, and a willingness to look insane in the eyes of others. In 2014, no one guaranteed that bitcoin would survive. Binance did not exist. Regulators could have destroyed the industry at any moment. Technical risks, exchange hacks, project collapses – all of this was the norm.

CZ’s decision became the foundation of his further path. Just a few years later, he launched Binance – an exchange that grew into the largest crypto platform in the world and changed the entire digital asset industry. His personal bet on bitcoin turned out to be not just financially successful – it became a symbol of an era.

This story is a vivid example of how radical decisions are made not on the basis of comfort, but on the basis of conviction. Most people choose safety and predictability. A few choose asymmetric risk, where you can lose everything – or change your life forever.

In 2014, Changpeng Zhao sold his apartment. Today, he entered the history of the crypto market. A bold decision. A high price of risk. And a life that truly changed the industry.