Bitcoin Forum

His name was Tony Vaughn and he was from Kentucky. He was paid his salary in bitcoin in 2013 , at time when very few even heard about bitcoin. If he would have not sold those bitcoins that he got as salary, he would might have been a billionaire by now. Because bitcoin price at that time was just $1000 a piece , so his wealth would have been about 30 times at current prices.

Based on my computation, he would not become a billionaire, proabably a millionaire.

I dig a bit and look for his name, there was an article that was dated 2013 reported about him getting paid in bitcoin as his salary. So if he continues receiving it, that's 10 years already. But let's judge it based on the fitures, not sure if the salary rate is correct but based on this article below., the "Chief Of Police Salary in Kentucky" is around $80k per month, I rounded it off.

So $80k x 10 years, that's only 800k which is less than a million, so even if we will multiply that by 30 times, that would only reach up to $24 million which is already overstated, so that "billion" never exist.

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https://www.cnet.com/tech/services-and-software/kentucky-police-chief-to-be-paid-in-bitcoin/
https://www.ziprecruiter.com/Salaries/Chief-Of-Police-Salary--in-Kentucky#Yearly

Base on my understanding even if he haven't  sold the bitcoin that he got he wouldn't have become a billionaire despite that he was the only one that is been paid by bitcoin at that 2013,but rather a millionaire because i  think they were just paying him $80k

If you remember that time, it was really lucky that person had Bitcoin. And if he decides it's profitable to hold until now or sell half and keep the rest until now he will still be rich. How much money would he get now if he sold it?

I salute and admire people like this, because they are able to assess the price of Bitcoin and are willing to accept salary payments using Bitcoin.

maybe now it looks like; too bad, but the money worked for what he needed it for, it was his salary, it wasn't extra money, whatever, it's happening right now someone is selling a bitcoin that will be worth 10 or 20 times more in the future.

Yea, he sold it because he got paid in Bitcoin, just like we received Fiat as a salary, and probably he could not save anything out of it but use it for some personal needs that he had at the time. It could have been anyone else too; perhaps there were so many people who also bought Bitcoin very cheaply those days but were unable to hold it till the last ATH. In the space of life, some people are faced with different needs and responsibilities, and there is no way they might have been able to keep holding their coin to date, even if they wanted to, but it seems they sold it because it was the only choice they had to make at that time.

We have that original thread here in 2013, Tiny Kentucky Town Agrees to Pay Only Police Officer In Bitcoin. (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=362455.0)

And so he was a police officer, and it was very uncanny for a public servant, specially a law enforcement official losing his belief in fiat system and looking for a alternative like Bitcoin in it's early years.

And he is correct, and let me quote him from that 2013 article:

That person did not know that the price of bitcoin would reach its highest price of $68K. they were only aware at that time bitcoin was growing, but not with a price surge many times over maybe they never thought about it, if they knew the future now maybe he would hold, the same thing as an investor who sold at a low price at the time if he knew he would definitely hold...
Let this be a problem then, so now I just know there are companies that pay with bitcoin back in 2013 where at that time bitcoin was not as fast as it is now, then he is really lucky and maybe it will be history for him that will never be forgotten.

Based on this article So he is not the one who's actually benefitting from his Bitcoin salary and besides he doesn't need that salary from that job since he owns real estate and does not work to make a living it's the town that's really benefiting from that salary.


https://www.foxnews.com/us/mayor-police-chief-in-struggling-kentucky-coal-town-to-donate-salary-in-bitcoins-to-spur-economy
 

though he has such kind of belief, but he still sold it. seems that he needed his fiat at that time but if he did stick to it and not sell, sure, he will be a billionaire today. it goes to show that even if you have strong belief on this market, there are circumstances that you still need to sell because of your financial situation.

Selling bitcoin is actually a normal procedure. Those who we have been earning right now in Bitcoin are still selling even though we know the potentiality of Bitcoin. Aren't we doing this? Otherwise, who has been selling Bitcoin on the market? If no one sells it, then no one can buy it, so the market will be stuck. Even if I get the salary during that time, I won't hold it till now; it's quite impossible unless I forget about my bitcoin. So Tony Vaughn could even become a millionaire if he holds, but who knows? I am pretty sure he also sold his holdings before seeing a massive pump.

Far from billionaire, but rich. Although reason people work in the first place, is that they need your salary to pay your bills, buy food and all the necessities, so majority of it isn't invested.
And i remember that fomo time pretty well. After 2014 when it started dropping, almost everyone in this planet would have exited. Bitcoin was new and everyone was laughing at you when you bought ath of that time. I can't remember any media reporting that it would go back up, so it would have taken mixture of crazy and true believer to hold it. Especially when no one could have predicted how high it would go.

I think he believes in Bitcoin and sold his Bitcoin maybe he really needs fiat at that time. After all, he work to have money for daily needs. Maybe he does something to his salary like donations and whatever the amountnof BTC he sold is for himself or family. Based on what I read from here (https://www.police1.com/police-administration/articles/chief-asks-to-be-paid-in-bitcoin-city-approves-ds9wkcgUjTmcKUvl/), he is aiming for the history where a person in their town received Bitcoin as a salary from a government entity. Well, his salary is already deducted with the tax as what I have read.

I haven't heard about Tony Vaughn before this post but as far a I know that Bitcoin's price was still over $13 a single Bitcoin and if that person might have hold his Bitcoin then he would be a millionaire right now. If we think about that in logical perspective then we get the answer that the guy didn't hold his Bitcoin because he received his Bitcoin as salary and mostly we spend our salary on the things that we like and that guy might has converted his Bitcoin into fiat so he could purchase the things that he needed during those days.

If that is the case then the earlier replies of discussing that this guy should have profited from the Bitcoin payment if he still holds that bitcoin is for nothing.  Since the payment is donated to some institution, I bet the Bitcoin is instantly converted to fiat the moment the donation touches the said Vicco Bitcoin account.  So no one is getting rich on this salary because it is probably converted real time after the donation is done.


It is indeed far from billionaire because the person does not hold the salary received in Bitcoin but rather donated it to the state.  Though I can say the person is already rich even before he decided to accept his salary in Bitcoin.

I am really sure, He probably didn't spare his salary at that time because he had to fulfill his life needs such as bills, food, etc, and maybe if he really saved his BTC, that is possible a only few satoshis left on his wallet. because BTC price movements would make people tempted to sell it. Maybe we can equalize Tony Vaughn with signature participant who got payment with btc, because there are many necessities for life, they might sell some, and set aside some. But I am really sure, some of them will sell everything if BTC price back to ATH or more than the previous price. because there are still many people still compare BTC with fiat.

I haven't heard of this news. Thanks for sharing!

Well, what can I say? This news sounds cute. A town with only 330 people, a police chief who requested that his salary be paid in Bitcoin, and a city commission approving it. That sounds really fun.

In 2013, not many people have heard of Bitcoin. But it seems to me Chief Vaughn didn't have much work to do that he probably had a lot of time to update himself with what's new. He probably studied it deeply to the point that he even requested that he be paid in Bitcoin.

Did Vicco have a nerdy police chief? LOL!

Based on some news I read, Tony got his salary in Bitcoin when its price was $1,181 on the Mt Gox exchange. It's true that back then, the price of Bitcoin had a really big jump, and this event from a decade ago actually made a lot of people talk about Bitcoin. In early January 2013, the price of Bitcoin was about $13, and later in Q4 2013, it reached its highest price at $1,000.

So, to sum it up, the experiment of receiving a salary in Bitcoin started during a time when Bitcoin was doing really well in the market. This was partly because of something called "halving" in November 2012... and usually, in experiments like this, salary payments weren't done many times... maybe just once or twice. So, I don't think Tony Vaughn became a big millionaire from his salary back then unless he held onto his Bitcoin until now.

Personally, I'm not a fan of discussions about regrets, like "if you didn't sell coin A a few years ago, you could be a billionaire by now." It's better for people not to dwell on their regrets and focus on the future. Bringing up past experiences that sound like big mistakes is not really ethical.

Well, it's his salary, and we are working because we have daily needs. It's his salary, so he doesn't have any choice but to sell it.

Another one is we are always thinking of "If he holds it for X number of years." or "He must've been rich by now if he held it." I mean let's face the reality guys. Do we know at that time that the price of Bitcoin will be reaching its current price right now?

In the end, it's only a matter of trust, and if we need it or not. I've been in signature campaigns for years already, and most of my earnings are converted because a portion of it is being used for some monthly needs of our home. I also used I guess around 0.08 BTC to build my own computer. Just imagine how much it would be if I chose to hold it until now. I can't imagine how many BTC I already converted into fiat.

I guess let's forget about this "He would've..." or "He must've been..." things right now because we don't know what can happen in the future.

How much did he get in 2013?

It is important because it relates to how many bitcoins he received from his salary in 2013. The more importance is did he hold his bitcoins in the last 11 years?

If in 2013, he received it but sold it to get cash, he no longer have bitcoins to sell in 2017, 2021 or today in 2023. Very few people can hold their coins long enough and if it is from 2013, it's harder to hold over many years with many fud for 10 years.

Another one who doesn't even read the comments on the first page.


I hope your manager Hhampuz doesn't pay you to write posts without having read the comments on the first page.

It would be better if you put a link to the source of your information.

Anyway, first of all, I am surprised that someone received his salary in Bitcoin in an American state at that early time in 2013, when Bitcoin was only about four years old. What is interesting about the story that I read is that this man was the chief of police and that he officially requested his salary in Bitcoin before the city committee. He was paid by the city commission after they had to use a Bitcoin wallet to fulfill his request.

This indicates this man's insightful vision for the future, as he realized that the future belongs to Bitcoin and that the dollar is declining. What is also nice is that the city committee gladly accepted his request, even though Bitcoin is not accepted in the United States.

You have to understand that most people can only invest a fraction of their salary, so even if he invested only say 10% of his salary... he would barely been a millionaire if he hoarded those coins.  ::)

You need to live on your salary and pay expenses, like the utilities and rent and car payments etc... so you cannot invest the whole salary. Most public servants will never be allowed to get their salary in Bitcoin, because governments do not acknowledge Bitcoin as a Currency.  ::)

Only if he didn't sold.

But because he's got his own needs and bills as well, I doubt it that he's able to hold a lot from that Bitcoins that used to paid him for his public service. And if he's in the forum or browses here for some discussions, it will be amazing if he shares his own experience and how he'd ended up accepting that.

It's always like this with these discussions from the early receiver of Bitcoin like a decade ago that they're rich now if they have never sold. They're all people and have expenses to be made just like us.

But we can't blame him for that; it's because it's his salary, and we know why he works; it's because he has basic needs and expenses, so at that time he does not have a mindset for something like we know right now; it's simple; he is not meant for that; we can't predict the future; we never know what will happen; and in that year, the bitcoin price has a small amount, and the technology is new to most people in that year, so no one expects that bitcoin will skyrocket and will be popular.

The story is similar to that of a guy who brought a pizza using his bitcoin. At that time, even though bitcoin has an amount, it's still not that much. A guy used his bitcoin asset to bring a pizza without knowing that if he holds the asset, he will also be a millionaire. It's also an example of people who missed a big opportunity that will turn their lives around in an instant, but they are not to blame; not all will be lucky.

Amazing Bitcoin story I hadnt heard before. Tony Vaughn's situation is fascinating. Bitcoin's volatility and stellar development would have made them worth a lot if he held them. It presents the issue of whether we can endure market swings without cashing in when life's expenses call.

Imagine his internal struggle as the currency soared; I wonder if he still hodl. Bitcoin's 'what if' component is constant. Tech investments are uncertain, since his decision may have affected his money.

Some call it a modern financial tale about risk, planning, and chance. Its amazing how such decisions can affect fortunes and cryptocurrency's payment acceptability. Each Bitcoin holder's narrative reveals its importance and potential, including Vaughn's.

I am hoping there would be an update on this man as the first public servant who got his salary in Bitcoin...so we can see if he was able some or all of the Bitcoin he received. While I don't expect him to have saved all of his Bitcoin, at least he could have saved half of them all so that he can now be considered as rich. Now, as what I heard, there have been others who got paid with Bitcoin as well when BTC was not yet in the 5-figure level...it would be interesting to know how these people fared in keeping their BTC in the face of the economic realities affecting all of us.

2013, Bitcoin price started the year at $13, and only reach that $1000 at the end of the year 2013, and it faced a lot of corrections, by December of 2013, Bitcoin closed the year at $754, so OP, when did this person get paid with Bitcoin? Because that's what will determine what his value would have been if he held till today, no link to this story? It's lacking more information.

I think it's a lot of money if he get paid when Bitcoin is at $13 but let's pretend that he got paid at the end of the year @ $1000 per Bitcoin, what is the salary of this man you are talking about?

A $100 invested in Bitcoin at the beginning of 2013 would get you roughly 7.5 BTC and today that's $277500, that's not even close to a million dollar, this is why it's important to know how much was paid to the man in Bitcoin. If we invested $100 on Bitcoin when it was at $1000 the value will be much less today, so there is no way this man would have been a billionaire, not even a millionaire.

Still, we don't have the information on how much he really earned so we really can't say, also I doubt that he would have hold the Bitcoin to date, not everyone can do this while the need of money is telling on them.

News about employees being paid using Bitcoin and even purchasing pizza with Bitcoin was very viral at that time.

When I was still in college and working part time as an editor on a blockchain and cryptocurrency website in 2014 I was also paid in Bitcoin. Unfortunately, I was so careless that I spent all of that on having fun with my girlfriend 🤦‍♂️.

It would be nice had you posted in some more information about this person, who they were, why they decided to go about being paid in bitcoin etc.

I also wonder things like why and how was his employer willing to pay out his salary in bitcoin. Also you have to keep in mind that most of the salary was spent to keep up with his monthly financial obligations..so that’s of course got to be factored in.

If Tony got his salary in Bitcoin when its price was at $1,181 then the guy wouldn't be a millionaire or even close to bein a millionaire even if he had hold his Bitcoin for long term. Yeah, the exception is going to be that if he has got his salary in Bitcoin when Bitcoin's value was still below $30 per coin. He would definitely be somewhat rich these days if he had received his salary when Bitcoin was priced $30 or below and and if he still hold that salary.

I also don't like past regrets because the past is gone and regrets will make someone more mentally depressed rather than helping him/her in any positive way. It's always better to forget the past and thing about the present and future because past is gone is regretting about the gone things is worst type of damage one can give himself/herself.

There's an article with an update on this police chief. However, the update is only up to the year 2021. Not sure if this will provide what you're looking for, but this is the info.

"Cummings announced that he and Vaughn would donate their salaries for the month to a wallet setup for donations to the embattled town." (https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2013/12/05/kentucky-police-chiefs-salary-paid-in-bitcoin/)

And this

"We're going to let it lay there for a while. As the city needs things done, we're going to take part of it out, but leave the majority in that account. That's what we talked about last night." (https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2013/12/05/kentucky-police-chiefs-salary-paid-in-bitcoin/)

As stated, the majority of the salary converted to Bitcoin was stored. The police chief Vaughn and the city mayor Cummings seem to know what they are doing and continue to keep Bitcoin. You may read the full article for the other info.

Don't regret it, I also used to spend a lot of bitcoins to be liquidated into fiat for the sake of just wanting fun because indeed bitcoin at that time was really strange especially when you first get it for free or even from the results of work paid in bitcoin.
That's not careless friends, because as I said never know the future at the previous time so no one thought to HODL longer, but now have realized that it is important to hold bitcoin as long as you can still earn from whatever you earn.

Yes, everything has happened, we can't do much other than accept it. Because of this experience, I have also become very calculating lately with the Bitcoin I own.

Regarding salary payments using Bitcoin, there are actually pros and cons. The positive side is that we can get Bitcoin without buying. The minus side is that when the Bitcoin network is congested to coincide with salary payments, the confirmation process will take a long time, it can take more than 1 day, transaction costs will also increase. Not to mention that if there is a significant decline in the price of Bitcoin, it will certainly reduce the USD value.

He must have been lucky his salary was paid in Bitcoin. Perhaps in some cases it seems that he sold it for his personal or family needs, may keep it. What I find very surprising is how he is a government employee and his salary is paid in Bitcoin even though his country does not support Bitcoin. I don't know for sure if Tony spent the bitcoins or is still holding them for the future. When he received his salary in Bitcoin, the price of Bitcoin was $1000, 35 times the current market value. It still amazes me that he was able to do it!

He must be one of the most iconic figure in crypto world , one of the very few that trusted Bitcoin when it is still not on that popularity so how could we react on that?
If i was being asked to have bitcoin as salary those days? for sure I will deny because I may not trust that easy this world.
But if this happens to me in 2017?  will surely accept it till now 2023 because of how much it has given to me all those years that i do understand bitcoin.