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Death, Sex & Money

A Bitcoin Mogul Goes Broke

Death, Sex & Money

Slate Audio

Careers, Sexuality, Business, Health & Fitness, Relationships, Society & Culture

4.6 • 7.7K Ratings

🗓️ 1 November 2017

⏱️ 27 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Charlie Shrem made a fortune on cryptocurrency, lost it all, and spent a year in prison for a federal crime—all before turning 30.  Support Death, Sex & Money today by becoming a sustaining member at $8/month and we'll send you our first-ever Death, Sex & Money mug. Go to deathsexmoney.org/donate or text "DSM" to 70101.  Subscribe to our weekly email newsletter and we'll send you great audio recommendations, fascinating letters from our inbox and updates from the show. Sign up at deathsexmoney.org/newsletter. Follow the show on Twitter @deathsexmoney and Facebook at facebook.com/deathsexmoney. Email us any time at deathsexmoney@wnyc.org. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

In prison, the more of a celebrity you are, the less respect you get.

0:05.0

You're judged on who you are as a person.

0:08.0

And I like being judged like that because I feel like I'm a pretty okay person.

0:13.0

People liked me and I was judged on that, not on the Bitcoin stuff.

0:18.0

This is death, sex and money.

0:24.0

He died doing what he loved.

0:26.0

The show from WNYC about the things we think about a lot.

0:29.0

Sometimes I don't know if I really, really love him or I have to love him.

0:33.4

I need to talk about more.

0:35.4

These people work very hard for their money.

0:38.5

I'm Anna Seale.

0:41.6

Charlie Shrim was a millionaire by the time he was 22 years old.

0:46.0

Within a few years, he lost it all.

0:49.0

I recently talked to him live on stage in Los Angeles.

0:52.0

Charlie was an early Bitcoin entrepreneur.

0:55.1

He co-founded a company called Bit Instant, which helped users convert dollars into

1:00.2

Bitcoin. Then someone started using that Bitcoin to do illegal things on the internet.

1:06.7

And Charlie knew about it. He was arrested and served a little over a year in prison after

1:11.6

a plea deal. Now Charlie is 27 and he's rebuilding not

1:16.8

just his bank account. He's left the Orthodox Jewish community he grew up in and

1:21.6

lives in Florida with his now wife Courtney. She met

1:24.8

him when he was flying high, then visited him regularly in federal prison.

...

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