The $820,000,000 Pizza Order (Yes, Really)

Think you’ve overspent on takeout before? Try dropping 10,000 Bitcoin on two Papa John’s pizzas. Sounds insane now, but back in 2010, that really happened.

The year was 2010. Bitcoin was basically digital monopoly money that only nerdy cryptography forums cared about. Enter Laszlo Hanyecz, a programmer who decided he was hungry and ready to use Bitcoin (BTC) to buy something real.

So he posted online: “I’ll give 10,000 BTC to anyone who brings me pizza.”

Someone actually did — two large Papa John’s pies were delivered to his door in Jacksonville, Florida. Transaction complete. History made. Nobody knew it then, but this was the first-ever real-world Bitcoin purchase — a moment that said, “Hey, maybe this internet coin thing could actually be used as money.”

While you’re thinking, “That’s insane! – TEN THOUSAND BITCOIN FOR A PIZZA???” Keep in mind, 10,000 BTC was worth only about $41 back then. Yep — forty-one bucks. Today? That same pile of Bitcoin is worth over $820 million (US). That’s a lot of pepperoni (I’m not sure if that included a tip).

What happened to Laszlo after his very expensive snack?

The guy who accidentally spent multi-millions on pizza became crypto-famous and quite rich (go figure). But here’s the twist: he doesn’t regret it. He’s said many times he’s happy to have helped prove Bitcoin could actually buy something, not just be talked about in tech forums.

Would I regret it?

YES, because if I bought $820 million dollars worth of pizza I’d want something better than Papa Johns! I already have my regrets about not buying Bitcoin when it was a hundred thousand dollars cheaper than it is now, but the whole Papa John’s thing? That’d just be a slap in the face on top of it all.

Do you know how I would deal with my depression after such an incident?

I’d eat more pizza.

Moral of the Story

If you’ve ever felt bad about buying something you maybe didn’t need or think you spend too much on… remember that someone once spent 10,000 Bitcoin on two pizzas.

And we celebrate him for it.

So yes — don’t think twice about getting that extra cheese upgrade.

You’re worth it. But maybe use cash or your debit card. to pay.

~ Marty The Pizza Guy ~

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