What if your $24 bet exploded into $850,000 in only four years? Well, that’s exactly what early Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) adopter Kristoffer Koch pulled off.

A $24 Bet That Changed Everything

The year is 2009. Koch, a Norwegian student, was writing his master’s thesis on encryption when he stumbled upon Bitcoin, an unknown online currency at the time.

Kosh said he tossed $24, about 150 Norwegian kroner, on it for “fun,” according to NRK News, a Norwegian news organization. But then his master’s degree and job hunt kept him too busy, and he forgot about the investment.

The Jackpot Discovery

Years later, in April 2013, the “unknown” currency started getting a lot of media attention, and that’s when Kosh remembered he had a stake in it.

But there was a problem. He had forgotten his private key to the encrypted wallet. After jogging his memory for the next 24 hours, he nailed the right combination.

He had 5,000 BTC, worth 5 million Norwegian kroner. At the time, 1 kroner equaled about 17 cents, making the stash worth roughly $850,000.

What If Kosh Hadn’t Sold His BTC?

Kosh said he sold some of his holdings and used the proceeds to buy an apartment in a posh neighbourhood in Oslo, Norway’s capital city.

If you thought that was a stuff of dreams, imagine Kosh resisting the urge to sell and HODLing straight through to now. That 5,000 BTC would be worth $353.54 million.

Price Action: At the time of writing, BTC was exchanging hands at $70,709.53, down 7.76% in the last 24 hours, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

Photo: Memory Stockphoto / Shutterstock

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