The sign’s original owner plans to use the fund to develop his Bitcoin layer 2 lightning startup.
The iconic ‘Buy Bitcoin’ sign shown behind Janet Yellen during a 2017 hearing was officially sold to an anonymous buyer for 16 BTC, equivalent to over $1 million at the time of the transaction. The sale occurred on Scare City, a platform for trading physical and digital collectibles.
this guy just bought @BitcoinUr’s iconic “bitcoin sign guy” #bitcoin artifact for 16 BTC and no one knows who he is. he spent time in jail in his life. but he’s a bitcoin OG that no one has ever heard of. don’t underestimate bitcoin @PubKey_NYC pic.twitter.com/tWrc1jNblE
— Alex Thorn (@intangiblecoins) April 25, 2024
Christian Langalis, the original owner of the sign, listed the item for auction exclusively in Bitcoin on April 12.
At the time of the historical moment, Langalis was an intern at the Cato Research Institute. In July 2017, Langalis attended the House Financial Services Committee, where he held the ‘Buy Bitcoin’ behind Janet Yellen, who was Chairman of the US Federal Reserve at the time.
His act was swiftly discovered, leading to his prompt removal from the event. However, it also catapulted the ‘Buy Bitcoin’ message into a viral online meme, and the man became one of the top influential people in the blockchain industry that year.
Even though the two individuals are no longer at the same event, they remain “dedicated” to their beliefs. Yellen, currently the US Secretary of the Treasury, is still known for her skepticism toward crypto while Langalis is actively involved in the sector.
Langalis plans to allocate the sale proceeds to his startup, Tirrel Corp. The company is currently developing a wallet for the Bitcoin layer 2 lightning network on Urbit and is in its pre-seeding investment stage.