Estonian banker loses access to 250,000 ETH worth over $1 billion

In the crypto world, a story worthy of a film adaptation has surfaced again. In 2015, Estonian banker Rein Lohmus bought Ethereum for $75 thousand at a price of only $0.30 per coin. Today, this package would turn into $1.16 billion, but there is a nuance - access to the wallet is lost along with the private key.

At that time, hardware wallets seemed exotic, and the advice to "write down the seed on a piece of paper and put it under the mattress" looked like paranoia. Bottom line: 250,000 ETH is still lying like a dead weight, like a museum exhibit frozen in the blockchain.

The situation looks especially ironic now, when Ether is gaining strength again, bitcoin is losing dominance, and the market is preparing for the alt-season. The train leaves before our eyes, and the owner only watches as billions float by.

The moral here is simple: crypto is a really convenient and global tool. With it, it is easy to deposit, transfer money around the world and build capital. But the main responsibility is safety. Store seed phrases offline, do not rely on memory, and get cold wallets even for small amounts. The cost of a mistake can be cosmic.