From New Oriental Star Teacher to 'Bitcoin Rich': Li Xiaolai's Path to Financial Freedom
Li Xiaolai's rise to wealth is one of the most legendary comeback stories in China's cryptocurrency circle, and his experience can be divided into three phases:
1. New Oriental Star Teacher Period (2001-2011)
Li Xiaolai was born in 1972 in Yanbian, Jilin. His early experiences were difficult, having worked in clothing wholesale, company management, and other professions. In 2001, he was recommended by Luo Yonghao to teach at New Oriental, and became a star teacher with his unique 'joke-based teaching method' and best-selling textbooks like '21 Days to Break Through TOEFL Core Vocabulary', accumulating his first pot of gold. During this period, he demonstrated a keen sense of trends, such as early exposure to computer technology and self-learning programming, laying the foundation for future investments.
2. Bitcoin Billionaire Phase (2011-2017)
In 2011, Li Xiaolai bought 2,100 bitcoins at an average price of $6, and later continued to buy when the price plummeted to $1, claiming to ultimately hold 'six-figure bitcoins' (the leading digit being 1). In 2013, when bitcoin surpassed $1,000, he appeared in The Wall Street Journal and was dubbed 'China's Bitcoin Billionaire', with his holdings valued at over $100 million at one point. During this time, he established Bit Fund, a trading platform called Coin Payment Treasure, and invested in blockchain projects like EOS, but the ICO regulatory storm in 2017 led to the collapse of some projects.
3. Controversy and Transformation (2018-Present)
In 2018, the 'scalping recording scandal' broke out (claiming 'retail investors are the consensus of fools'), severely damaging his public image. After that, he turned to paid knowledge, profiting over 50 million yuan through books like 'Self-Cultivation of Retail Investors' and columns on the GetApp. After 2021, he gradually faded out of the cryptocurrency circle, but on-chain data shows his bitcoin holdings have significantly decreased, making his real wealth a mystery.
Evaluation: Li Xiaolai's success stems from his early bets on bitcoin and ability to monetize traffic, but controversial actions (such as the recording scandal and air coin doubts) have made him a figure of mixed reputation in the cryptocurrency circle.
