In 2009, Norwegian engineering student Kristoffer Koch began exploring the world of cryptocurrencies when he came across bitcoin.
After doing some research, he decided to invest 150 Norwegian kroner (equivalent to around 25 dollars at the time) to buy 5,000 bitcoins.
Koch completely forgot about the investment until, many years later, the media began reporting on the exponential growth of cryptocurrencies — particularly bitcoin.
Then, in 2013, Koch got a big surprise when he remembered the small investment he had made in 2009. After spending an entire day trying to recover his account, he managed to access the wallet he had created years earlier.
“It said I had 5,000 bitcoins there. At today’s rate, that’s about NOK 5 million (US$847,000),” Koch told the media in 2013.
He decided to sell 1,000 bitcoins and, even after paying 28% tax on his fortune, he had enough kroner left to buy a luxury apartment in Toyen, one of the most upscale areas in the Norwegian capital.
“Not even in my wildest dreams could I have imagined they’d rise like this. It’s bizarre, those psychological reflexes that make us assign value to something that has none in itself.”
Photo and video: Kristoffer Koch. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
