The crypto industry is booming, with Bitcoin doubling in value over the past year and the total market value of all cryptocurrencies increasing by 170%. This has resulted in at least 17 individuals becoming crypto billionaires, with a collective net worth of $93 billion. Changpeng Zhao, the founder of Binance, remains the wealthiest person in the crypto world, with an estimated net worth of $33 billion. Other notable billionaires include Michael Saylor of MicroStrategy and Brian Armstrong of Coinbase, whose fortunes have also seen significant growth.
Newcomers to the crypto billionaire club include Giancarlo Devasini, Paolo Ardoino, Jean-Louis van der Velde, and Stuart Hoegner, all major shareholders of Tether, a stablecoin issuer. The list also features familiar faces such as the Winklevoss twins, Tim Draper, and Jed McCaleb, who have accumulated significant wealth through their investments in Bitcoin, Ripple, and other crypto assets.
The rankings of the richest people in crypto also highlight the success stories of individuals like Joe Lau and Nikil Viswanathan, who co-founded Alchemy, a Web3 infrastructure provider, and have seen their net worths rise to $1.5 billion each. Tim Draper, a venture capitalist and early Bitcoin investor, has seen his net worth increase to $2 billion thanks to his investments in a variety of companies.
Stuart Hoegner, the general counsel for Tether, has seen his net worth jump to $2.5 billion, while Mike Novogratz, the head of Galaxy Digital Holdings, has returned to the billionaire ranks with a net worth of $2.5 billion. The Winklevoss twins, Tyler and Cameron, continue to hold a significant amount of wealth through their investments in Bitcoin and their ownership of the Gemini exchange.
Jed McCaleb, the creator of Mt. Gox and a co-founder of Ripple, has a net worth of $2.9 billion from selling XRP tokens. Matthew Roszak, an early investor in Bitcoin, has a net worth of $3.1 billion, while Fred Ehrsam, the co-founder of Coinbase, has seen his net worth rise to $3.2 billion. Chris Larsen, the co-founder of Ripple, has a net worth of $3.2 billion, while Jean-Louis van der Velde and Paolo Ardoino, key figures at Tether, have net worths of $3.9 billion each.
At the top of the list is Changpeng Zhao, the founder of Binance, with a net worth of $33 billion. Despite legal issues and fines related to money laundering charges, Zhao’s stake in Binance remains highly valuable, making him the wealthiest person in the crypto world. With the industry continuing to grow and evolve, the fortunes of these crypto billionaires are likely to keep rising as well.
