“Old HODLer” Confession: 6 Years in Crypto, 20 Million Lost, and Hard-Earned Investment Insights

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👉 Discover the #1 strategy that separates winners from losers in crypto investing.

Starting with $10,000: A Beginner’s First Steps

I’m Jiemo Huoshan, coming from a background in tech and gaming. I entered the crypto world in 2017, just as Bitcoin broke the 10,000 RMB mark. Over the next six years, I experienced explosive gains, near-total wipeouts, and everything in between. These cycles shaped my understanding of investing—not through theory, but through real pain and euphoria.

Like many newcomers, I started clueless. My entry was guided by a friend who recommended two projects: NEO (then known as "Xiaoyi Coin") and BTS, the blockchain created by BM, later famous for EOS. With caution, I allocated $10,000 to test the waters.

Back then, Chinese exchanges allowed direct fiat deposits into corporate accounts. You could trade in RMB pairs and withdraw profits straight to your personal bank card—something we now look back on nostalgically. My first deposit was on BitStar, once the leading altcoin exchange.

After some research, I decided to go all-in: $9,000 into BTS and $1,000 into NEO. At the time, BTS seemed revolutionary—offering smart contracts and its own decentralized exchange. It looked like the future. NEO, led by a Chinese team, had mixed reviews.

But reality had other plans.

When the bull market erupted, NEO surged past 1,000 RMB—over 100x my entry. I held it to the top, turning $1,000 into over $100,000. Thrilling? Absolutely. But I didn’t sell at the peak. During the bear market, it crashed back to 20–30 RMB. Still profitable, but the emotional rollercoaster was brutal.

This early win planted dangerous seeds: overconfidence and the illusion of control.

Chasing $10 Million: Greed Takes Over

After that initial success, I believed I’d cracked the code. With my technical background, I dove deep into blockchain fundamentals and convinced myself I understood the market. Seeing nearly every coin rise—even laggards eventually catching up—I thought: Why not buy them all?

I spread $5,000 across each of the 30+ altcoins on BitStar. My portfolio became a live barometer of market sentiment—dubbed “Market Cap Brother” in my group chats.

Then came the crash—40% down in days. With so many positions, I couldn’t react fast enough. My first real loss taught me a harsh truth: Diversification without understanding is just gambling.

I pulled back—until September 4, 2017.

The 9/4 Crackdown and a Bold Bet

On that day, China’s seven regulatory bodies banned ICOs and ordered domestic exchanges to shut down. Panic spread. Many sold at rock-bottom prices, convinced crypto was dead.

But I had studied Bitcoin’s core philosophy: it was designed to resist centralized control. If you believe any single government can kill Bitcoin, you shouldn’t be here.

So on the final day before BitStar closed—marking the end of an era—I invested $140,000 (1 million RMB) into Bitcoin at its bottom.

👉 See how early adopters turned small bets into life-changing wins—without luck.

The Rise of Binance and My Biggest Win

Enter Binance, launched in 2017 as a pure crypto-to-crypto exchange. No fiat. No USDT at first. I wasn’t impressed initially—BNB’s private sale at $0.20 passed me by.

But fate intervened.

The 9/4 crackdown wiped out Binance’s competitors. Being offshore and crypto-only, Binance survived. CZ’s Canadian citizenship gave him flexibility. In the vacuum, Chinese investors flooded in.

User growth exploded. So did BNB.

I studied BNB’s tokenomics—burn mechanism, utility—and swapped my entire BTC holdings into BNB at around $8 each—about 35,000 BNB.

When BNB hit $150, my paper wealth approached **$5 million**—a 20x return.

Selling near $90 after the peak, I locked in millions. One morning, I woke up $1 million richer overnight—more than I’d earned in a decade of entrepreneurship.

EOS, TRX, QTUM—all delivered 10x to 100x returns. Even IOTA hit thousands of percent gains.

But this era also birthed chaos: scam projects like “SpaceChain” using satellites for blockchain (yes, really), and gatekeepers who made you beg to invest.

Then came the crash.

Bitcoin nearly hit $20K—and plunged.

I held on, ignoring red flags. “It’s just a dip,” I told myself. Classic denial.

Losses mounted. Projects collapsed. My portfolio fell from nearly $10 million to under $1 million—almost all paper gains wiped out with zero withdrawals.

From $25K Back to $5M: Learning (and Repeating) Mistakes

After that collapse, I stepped away. The bear market was silent—projects gone dark, influencers vanished, communities dead.

Then came March 12, 2020—"Black Thursday." Pandemic panic crashed Bitcoin to $3,800. I missed the bottom—busy scaling a social commerce business with a 1,000-person team.

By November 2020, BTC reclaimed its all-time high (~$13K). A new bull cycle confirmed.

With family needs limiting cash flow, I borrowed $29K via Alipay/WeChat:

I took the $7K and used 2x leveraged rolling positions on ETH, LTC, XLM, ZEN—reinvesting profits to compound gains.

The market rose steadily—no major drawdowns. My $7K grew to **$145K**.

At peak:

Then I caught FIL with 10x leverage—a final push that took my portfolio to $5 million.

Almost Losing It All—Again

This time, I knew better. “Set profit-taking rules,” I told myself.

At $1M paper profit: withdrew $43K—paid off loans, treated myself.

Plan: Sell incrementally every $1M gained.

But greed returned.

Before Coinbase’s IPO—a likely market top—I closed leveraged positions and moved to BNB spot.

Smart move… until Coinbase launched and prices rallied instead of crashing.

Tempted by the dream of hitting $10M again, I re-entered with 10x leverage, adding tight stop-losses.

Then came May 19, 2021—"519 Crash."

My leveraged position liquidated instantly. Half my net worth gone.

Desperate to recover, I opened a 1.5x coin-margined long on BNB—only for it to drop another 75% over two days.

Exchange interfaces froze. My liquidation price? Just $10 away from zero.

I survived—but barely.

I chose to exit all leverage and return to spot BNB with $72K left.

When the market later rebounded? Yes, I could’ve recovered millions.

But I didn’t care. Surviving greed felt more valuable than any profit.

Rebuilding to $2M: Discipline Over Desire

In the next phase:

Today? Around $3 million RMB (~$420K)—not life-changing wealth, but sustainable capital with discipline intact.

Key Investment Lessons from Two Decades of Wins and Wipes

1. Investing Is a Real Discipline

My early wins were pure luck. But luck doesn’t last. Without a system, you’ll give back every dollar you didn’t earn through skill.

Investing is like entrepreneurship—a high-risk craft refined only through failure and iteration.

You must:

Only then can you survive beyond bull runs.

2. High Risk Is Everywhere—Especially When You Don’t See It

Crypto isn’t uniquely risky—it just reveals risk faster.

The real danger? Leverage without awareness.

Consider this:
Mortgage loans are financial leverage—just like 10x futures.

For decades, rising home prices masked the danger. People believed “real estate never crashes” just like crypto traders once said “BNB will go to $1,000.”

When corrections hit? Entire families face ruin—not because assets dropped, but because they couldn’t service debt.

Same in crypto: leverage amplifies both gains and psychological stress. One bad move can erase years of progress—and mental health.

3. Risk Management Rules That Saved Me

❌ Never All-In

“Going all-in” works until it doesn’t.

I did it with BTC in 2017 (worked), BNB (worked), then a metaverse project (failed), and leveraged FIL (nearly fatal).
Each time I ignored diversification for conviction—I paid dearly.

⚠️ Leverage Only When Necessary—and Cautiously

Leverage has its place—but only if:

Ask yourself: Can I survive total loss? If not—don’t touch leverage.

For most people? Small position + low leverage = long-term survival.

👉 Learn how disciplined traders turn volatility into consistent gains—without blowing up.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can you really make money in crypto without getting wiped out?
A: Yes—but only with strict rules on position sizing, leverage, and emotional control. Most fail because they treat crypto like gambling, not investing.

Q: Should beginners use leverage?
A: No. Leverage magnifies mistakes. Master spot trading and risk management first. Even experienced traders lose everything with leverage during black swan events.

Q: How do you avoid emotional decisions during crashes?
A: Have a written plan before volatility hits. Decide your exit points during calm markets—not when your net worth drops 50% in hours.

Q: Is dollar-cost averaging (DCA) better than timing the market?
A: For most people—yes. Timing requires experience and nerves of steel. DCA reduces timing risk and builds discipline over time.

Q: What’s one habit every investor should build?
A: Review your trades monthly—not just P&L, but your reasoning process. Were you greedy? Fearful? Overconfident? Journaling builds self-awareness faster than any book.

Q: How important is having an off-ramp strategy?
A: Critical. If you never cash out profits, you never truly win. Set clear profit-taking rules and stick to them—even if it means missing out on further gains.

Final Thoughts

Six years. Millions gained—and lost.

But here’s what remains:

Crypto will always have new bubbles. The next one might be AI tokens or RWA—or something no one sees coming.

Whatever it is—I’ll be ready. Not chasing moonshots, but building resilience one disciplined trade at a time.

Because in this game, staying in it matters more than any single win.

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