## May 2011: I bought my first Bitcoins

I discovered Bitcoins in May 2011. I learned about it probably from [Slashdot](https://slashdot.org).

<center> 
https://img.inleo.io/DQmNPWT9G7wMtxExokZXqn8d2L3uk9PcMV6Ti5jRWft9au1/Bitcoin_480.png 
</center>

As soon as I discovered Bitcoin, I was sure that it would be a major event. I read the white paper several time and decided that I could buy some with money that I could afford to lose.

At this time, it was difficult to buy Bitcoins. I no longer remember what I had to do. I moved US$1,500 and bought 2,000 Bitcoins at $7 a piece on May 18<sup>th</sup> 2011.

I told my wife about it: we will get rich with Bitcoins. She did not believe me and she told me that I would lose all my money. However, she added, if you make money with it, you will take me on a cruise!

Three weeks later, I was visiting my colleagues at [AdaCore](https://www.adacore.com) in Paris and I told them about my Bitcoin purchase. They had the same reaction as my wife: Vincent, you will lose all your money.

I did not want to look stupid if Bitcoin went down to zero. So, on June 9th, as the price of Bitcoin was up to US$30, I sold 50. This way, I got back my money. I now had 150 Bitcoins that had not cost me a dime!

---

## The Mt. Gox exchange

My 150 Bitcoins were on the crypto exchange [Mt. Gox](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mt._Gox).

<center>
 https://img.inleo.io/DQmVVAYmhymdZpjyyWVSFHiybHMecUtrvtGJm2Lo4VstoPR/MtGox.png 
</center>

Mt. Gox started as a company. in 2006, to trade cards from the online game [Magic: The Gathering Online](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic:_The_Gathering_Online). The original meaning of <i>Mt. Gox</i> was "Magic: The Gathering Online eXchange".

In July 2010, it became a crypto exchange for Bitcoins.

I was naive at this time, and I did not realize that my Bitcoins were not safe on Mt. Gox.

With some of my Bitcoins, I tried various schemes that did not go anywhere.

In November 2013, as the price of Bitcoin skyrocketed, I sold 10 Bitcoins for CAD$10,000 and I told my wife that I was ready for a cruise. More than 10 years later, we have not gone to one: we are too busy with our families.

# February 2014: The Mt. Gox Disaster

At the beginning of 2014, I still had 104 Bitcoins on Mt. Gox. They were worth at this time between $80K to $100K.

Then, in February 2014, Mt.Gox went bankrupt: it was badly managed and had been hacked for several years.

So, I could not get back my 104 Bitcoins. I no longer had any crypto assets.

I thought that my involvement with cryptos was over, but I was wrong.

### Continue to [Part 2](https://inleo.io/@vcelier/my-crypto-adventures-part-2-becoming-a-crypto-millionaire-fyp).
<br>
---

-- Vincent Celier

 https://img.inleo.io/DQmbEtHg6NcqhfWwncm6A6vPPyZXxcE1sdvDzvXzaZDgnqv/vincent-celier.png 


Posted Using [InLeo Alpha](https://inleo.io/@vcelier/my-crypto-adventures-part-1-from-discovery-of-bitcoin-to-the-mt-gox-disaster-fex)