From Factory Boss to Ride-Hailing Driver: A Cautionary Tale of Crypto Addiction and 300万 Debt
The High Cost of Chasing Crypto Miracles
Watching another “degens gonna degen” story unfold, I’m reminded why my quant models always include a human irrationality coefficient. Our subject - let’s call him Phoenix - wasn’t some naive retail trader. A deputy director at a state-owned coal plant with a 9,000 RMB/month salary, Audi in the driveway, and zero mortgage. Textbook Chinese middle-class success story… until crypto entered the picture.
When Calculated Risks Become Reckless Bets
Phoenix’s descent followed the classic Dunning-Kruger meets sunk cost fallacy trajectory:
- 2018: Dabbled in stamp-based financial products (邮币卡), escaped with small profits
- 2020: Entered crypto via spot trading, then discovered the dopamine hit of 100x leverage on shitcoins
- 2021-2023: Four separate debt cycles totaling 300万 RMB:
- Liquidated savings
- Maxed out digital loans (借呗)
- Sold sister’s apartment
- Mortgaged family home at 30% interest
The killer detail? He canceled stop-loss orders mid-trade, the financial equivalent of removing your parachute because “this plane might still fly.”
The Behavioral Economics of Self-Destruction
What fascinates me as a quant isn’t the losses - we see those daily - but the psychological machinery:
- Probability blindness: Interpreting Bitcoin price news as personal opportunity
- Loss aversion: “Just one more trade” mentality after each failed attempt
- Social proof: Watching fake CT influencers flaunt imaginary gains
His own words haunt me: “I became psychologically distorted… too desperate to recover losses.” This from a man who once managed industrial operations worth millions.
When Bailouts Enable Addiction
The crypto community’s response? Controversial influencer Liang Xi offered 50,000 RMB - ironically funding recovery through profits made from the very leverage products that ruined Phoenix. It’s like giving an alcoholic bartending gigs.
Cold Hard Lessons for Rational Investors
- Leverage is financial fentanyl - Even ‘small’ doses rewire decision-making
- Markets don’t care about your breakeven point - Sunk costs are irrelevant to price action
- Addiction patterns transcend substances - Trading can trigger same neural pathways as gambling
As I crunch blockchain data in my LA office today, Phoenix is driving 14-hour Didi shifts to repay loans charging more interest than most hedge funds return. His story isn’t unique - just exceptionally well-documented. The real question is how many are currently writing similar endings across Telegram trading groups right now.
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کرپٹو کی لت: ایک افسانوی المیہ
یہ کہانی ایک ایسے شخص کی ہے جو فیکٹری کے مالک سے ڈرائیور بن گیا۔ کرپٹو کی دنیا میں “جیت” کا خواب دیکھتے ہوئے، وہ 30 لاکھ کے قرض میں ڈوب گیا۔
جب خطرہ جنون بن جائے
اس نے اپنی بچت، بہن کا فلٹ، اور گھر تک گروی رکھ دیا۔ سب سے مزیدار بات؟ اس نے اپنے “اسٹاپ لوس” آرڈرز کو منسوخ کر دیا — بالکل ایسے جیسے پیراشوٹ کو اتار پھینکنا کیونکہ “شاید یہ جہاز ابھی تک اڑ سکتا ہے”۔
کیا آپ بھی اس دلدل میں ہیں؟
کمنٹس میں بتائیں، کیا آپ نے بھی کبھی ایسی غلطی کی ہے؟ 😅
Когда крипто-аппетит превышает бюджет
Феникс - ходячий учебник по “как потерять 3 миллиона и Audi”. Бывший замдиректора угольного завода теперь таксует по 14 часов в день, спасаясь от кредиторов.
Финансовый парашют? Отменён! Как истинный деген, он отключал стоп-лоссы - ведь “этот самолёт ещё взлетит”. Теперь его самолёт - Daewoo Matiz с шашечками.
Братья-славяне, кто ещё в телеграм-чатах повторяет его путь? Делитесь в комментариях своими “успехами”!
From Factory Boss to Ride-Hailing Driver — yes, this is not a crypto meme. This is real life.
Phoenix had it all: Audi, no mortgage, stable job… then crypto hit like a leveraged meteor. He canceled stop-losses like he was deleting his own parachute mid-air.
Leverage isn’t just risk — it’s brain rot in 100x form. And now? Driving 14 hours for change that’ll barely cover interest rates higher than my hedge fund’s annual return.
Who needs therapy when you’ve got Telegram groups preaching ‘one more trade’?
You know who else is doing this? Probably you. Or someone in your group right now.
Comment below: Who’s next?
