5 "underground kings" of the bitcoin kingdom

(Dan Tri) - Behind bitcoin are 5 powerful "whales" with assets enough to stir up the market. From anonymous people to technology tycoons, who are they?

No longer a far-fetched concept or a niche financial product for techies, bitcoin (BTC) has cemented its position as a globally valuable asset.

With a maximum total supply of 21 million bitcoins, bitcoin's market capitalization reaches nearly $2,300 billion, a number that is enough to challenge even the giants in the traditional financial industry.

The rise has been fueled by an unprecedented wave of adoption, with bitcoin spot exchange-traded funds from giants like BlackRock and Grayscale attracting hundreds of billions of dollars from mainstream investors.

Still, the bitcoin ownership map has become complex, with power distributed among giant exchanges like Binance, listed companies, ETFs and national treasuries.

The most intriguing question remains, outside of legal entities and organizations, who are the individuals who actually own the most bitcoin? Who are the “underground kings”, the lone “whales” who can create tsunamis with just one transaction?

Below is a list of 5 people who are considered suitable for the above titles.

Satoshi Nakamoto: "The Dark King" and his $137.5 Billion Fortune

Estimated holdings: 1.1 million BTC

Estimated value: $137.5 billion

Topping every list, far and away the competition, is a “ghost”: Satoshi Nakamoto. The true identity of the man who created bitcoin in 2008 with the white paper “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System” remains the greatest mystery of the 21st century.

Through analysis of on-chain data, researchers believe that Satoshi personally mined around 1.1 million BTC in the early days of the network. This fortune, now worth over $137 billion, has been sitting dormant, dispersed across around 22,000 different wallet addresses and hasn’t been moved in over a decade.

More than just a fortune, it is an economic “time bomb.” If any of those 1.1 million BTC were to move, it would send a shockwave through the market, potentially causing the price of bitcoin to crash and triggering a full-blown crisis of confidence. Satoshi’s silence is both a blessing and a curse hanging over the crypto world.

Satoshi Nakamoto, the father of bitcoin, is the largest holder of bitcoin with about 1.1 million BTC (Photo: Alamy).

The Winklevoss Twins: Prophets of Vengeance

Estimated holdings: 70,000 BTC

Estimated value: $8.75 billion

Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, the twins who famously sued Mark Zuckerberg over the idea of Facebook, have turned their $65 million settlement into a cryptocurrency empire. Instead of being bitter about the past, they see the future in bitcoin.

In 2013, when bitcoin was still an unknown concept with a price of only a few dozen dollars, they invested heavily and claimed to own 1% of the total bitcoin supply at that time. Today, they are estimated to still hold about 70,000 BTC, equivalent to nearly $9 billion.

But they are not just passive investors. They founded Gemini, one of the most licensed and regulated cryptocurrency exchanges in the United States, and played a key role in bringing bitcoin to the financial mainstream. Their story is a classic example of turning a failure into an even greater victory.

Tim Draper: Venture capitalist takes over 'silk road'

Estimated holdings: 29,656 BTC

Estimated value: $3.7 billion

Tim Draper is a legend in the venture capital world, with an eye for detail that led to early investments in Tesla, Skype, and Hotmail. So when he bet on bitcoin, the world took notice.

In 2014, in what was considered an extremely bold move, Draper won a US government auction to buy back all 29,656 BTC seized from the infamous online black market Silk Road. He paid $18.7 million for the deal, at just $632 per BTC.

That investment has now grown into a $3.7 billion fortune, yielding a return of nearly 20,000%. Draper doesn't just see bitcoin as an investment, he's a big believer, calling it "the currency of the future" and a hedge against the devaluation of traditional currencies.

Michael Saylor: Bitcoin "evangelist"

Estimated holdings (personal): 17,732 BTC

Estimated net worth (personal): $2.2 billion

If there is one person who deserves the title of “bitcoin evangelist,” it is Michael Saylor. After his company MicroStrategy tanked during the dot-com bubble, Saylor was reborn with a strong belief that bitcoin was the solution.

In 2020, he shocked Wall Street by converting a large portion of his company’s treasury into bitcoin. But Saylor didn’t stop there, he also dipped into his personal pockets to buy 17,732 BTC at an average price of around $16,000. That personal investment is now worth more than $2.2 billion.

Saylor has been relentless in promoting Bitcoin across all media outlets, calling it “digital gold” and “cyber banking.” Under his leadership, MicroStrategy has amassed nearly 600,000 BTC, making it the largest publicly traded company holding bitcoin on the planet. He doesn’t just invest in bitcoin, he lives and breathes it.

Changpeng Zhao (CZ): Architect of a Trading Empire

Estimated holdings: Around 1,300 BTC (and a large amount of Binance Coin - BNB)

Estimated Value (BTC Only): $162.5 Million

Despite holding the least amount of bitcoin on this list, Changpeng Zhao (CZ), founder and former CEO of Binance, is undeniably influential. The bulk of his vast fortune comes from his stake in Binance and the BNB token, but his roots still stem from a bold move with bitcoin.

In 2014, CZ sold his apartment in Shanghai to buy all his money into bitcoin. This "all-in" decision became the foundation for building Binance - the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange. Although his personal BTC holdings are said to be relatively modest compared to other "whales" (around 1,300 BTC), it represents an initial belief that has changed an entire industry.

From the mysterious figure of Satoshi to the billionaires who have publicly shaken up the market, these figures show that early bets on bitcoin not only yielded huge fortunes, but also gave them the power to shape the future of global finance. They are symbols of a powerful emerging era of digital money.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/kinh-doanh/5-vi-vua-ngam-cua-vuong-quoc-bitcoin-20250806170651592.htm