I just remembered a landmark date in crypto history. Exactly 11 years ago, on August 28, 2014, Hal Finney passed away – a figure without whom cryptocurrency would be completely different. He was not just the first Bitcoin user; he was the person who literally launched the network on his computer.

Hal Finney received the first transaction in history – exactly 10 BTC from Satoshi Nakamoto himself. Can you imagine? He was there at the very beginning, when no one else believed in it. Finney didn’t just believe – he acted. He launched a node, started mining, participated in the development of the network when it was literally empty.

What amazes me is that Hal Finney left a will. Before his death, he made a decision that sounds like science fiction: to freeze his body in the hope that future generations will find a way to cure his illness. Cryonics. It was his bet on the future, on science advancing far enough.

Many still debate whether Finney was the real Satoshi Nakamoto. I think it doesn’t matter. What matters is that Hal Finney was a real person who believed in the idea and helped bring it to life. His contribution to crypto history is invaluable.