The Idea That Cost $65 Million
In 2002, Harvard students and members of the U.S. national rowing team, Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, conceived of a private social network called HarvardConnection (later renamed ConnectU). They enlisted fellow student Mark Zuckerberg to program it. However, in 2004, Zuckerberg launched his own project, Facebook. The brothers accused him of intellectual property theft and breach of an oral contract, taking him to court.
The legal battle lasted four years, concluding in 2008 with a settlement. Zuckerberg paid the twins $65 million: $20 million in cash and $45 million in Facebook stock. The brothers later attempted to challenge the agreement, believing they had been defrauded during the company's valuation, but the appeals court upheld the verdict.
Betting on an Invisible Currency
After receiving the settlement, the brothers established the investment firm Winklevoss Capital. However, their greatest financial triumph came with the discovery of Bitcoin. According to legend, they first learned about the cryptocurrency in 2012 from a chance acquaintance while on vacation in Ibiza.
After studying blockchain technology, the twins recognized its potential and decided to invest $11 million of their 'Facebook' capital into Bitcoin. In 2013, they began accumulating coins, ultimately amassing around 100,000 BTC. At that time, this represented approximately 1% of all existing Bitcoins worldwide. Their average purchase price was around $120 per coin. Many regarded them as crazy.
The First Bitcoin Billionaires
When the price of Bitcoin first surged past the $11,000 mark in late 2017, amidst the initial global crypto boom, the brothers' fortune exceeded one billion dollars. Thus, Cameron and Tyler officially became the world's first 'Bitcoin billionaires,' with their wealth earned exclusively from the cryptocurrency's appreciation.
Unlike many early investors who quickly took profits and exited the market, the Winklevosses continued to hold their assets and build infrastructure around them. In 2014, they founded the cryptocurrency exchange Gemini, which remains one of the most reliable and strictly regulated platforms in the U.S. to this day.
Today, the brothers remain heavyweights in the industry. According to Forbes estimates, they still hold approximately 70,000 Bitcoins.
The irony of fate is that after losing control of a social network idea that connected billions of people, the Winklevoss brothers received compensation that allowed them to purchase an asset which permanently altered the global financial system.
