Bitcoin's 2011 Price Recovery
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Balaji shares how Bitcoin's recovery from a major crash in 2011 convinced him of its staying power.
"The crash from $32 down to $2 in 2011 and the subsequent recovery up to $10 in 2012 convinced me the thing had staying power. It's very rare that you have something endure a 90%+ drop and then come back.
After that recovery, I taught a course at Stanford where I talked about Bitcoin. I said 'I'm not sure if Bitcoin is the one that wins, but it is a very powerful tech that is something in that class will be a big deal.' I think both were correct statements.
This was around the time Coinbase got going. Brian, Fred and I first met in January 2013, very early in the history of Coinbase. I even used the Coinbase API in a class that I taught that year and in a MOOC course. That was basically my story of getting into Bitcoin and crypto."
Balaji Srinivasan
Former CTO of Coinbase and co-founder of genetic-consulting company Counsyl Inc. Holds a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University.
Investor and author with expertise in biotech, computational genomics, and blockchain technology. Published "The Network State: How to Start a New Country" in 2022.
Advocates for cryptocurrency and technocapitalism, currently establishing The Network School near Singapore.