These high school dropouts turned $1,000 into millions of dollars!
In 2011, at the age of 12, Erik Finman received US$1,000 as a gift from his grandmother which he used to buy bitcoin, at the time it was US$10 per BTC.
How did he discover BTC so early? During a protest at the Jefferson Memorial in Washington D.C., which he attended with his brother. He saw a guy with a bitcoin t-shirt, when he asked his brother about it, his brother replied “this will end Wall Street”.
So, he bought BTC using that $1,000. For three years, his life revolved around bitcoin trading and school. He didn't perform well in school, one of his teachers even scolded him,
"He might as well drop out of school and work at McDonald's, because he wouldn't achieve anything greater in life."
At age 15, Erik dropped out of high school and made a deal with his parents. If I made a million dollars before I turned 18, I wouldn't have to go back to school or attend college.
He promptly cashed in $100,000 worth of bitcoin and launched Botangle from his bedroom – an educational venture that offers video chat lessons on how to connect an Australian student with a private tutor in Tokyo.
In 2015, an investor offered him to buy his company with $100,000 or 300 BTC. At that time, the value per BTC was only around $200. However, Finman believed in the future of cryptocurrency and chose 300 BTC. And boy was he right!
At age 17, Erik officially became a millionaire when the value of bitcoin surpassed US$2,700, fulfilling his bet before turning 18. His business ventures paid off, he didn't go to college, instead traveling the world, visiting cities like Dubai, Hong Kong and Stockholm. He also bought the luxurious Audi R8 as a car.
Now, Erik's bitcoin investments have increased significantly, establishing his net worth in the eight-figure range. He is an influential investor in a Silicon Valley cryptocurrency startup
