In this episode, Sunny Ray sits down with longtime friend and early Bitcoin adopter Antoine De Vuyst, tracing their shared roots back to Toronto's Decentral meetups around 2013 and 2014. Antoine recounts a globe-spanning childhood, born in Japan and raised across the Middle East, and his lifelong fascination with math, technology, and futurist ideas like the singularity. He explains how he first discovered Bitcoin around 2011 while browsing the deep web, later diving in seriously after recognizing the implications of its 21 million coin cap. The conversation covers his colorful early Bitcoin years, including co-launching Toronto's second Bitcoin ATM called Bumblebee Exchange, a wild story about accidentally receiving 900 extra bitcoins from an exchange bug, and his claim of personally pushing Bitcoin's price above 1,000 dollars on Mt. Gox in 2014. Antoine also shares hard lessons learned from losing funds on Mt. Gox, emphasizing self custody of private keys, before shifting into his current venture, DevCash, a project aimed at building a currency to incentivize blockchain developers. The episode blends nostalgia, humor, and insight into Bitcoin's early culture.
Early Bitcoiner Antoine De Vuyst shares wild Mt. Gox stories, ATM mishaps, and his new DevCash project.
Where did you and I first meet?
I think it was around 2014, maybe late 2013, at Decentral in Toronto. I remember giving presentations on Buttercoin at the Bitcoin meetups there, and afterward we'd just hang out and talk. Over time the meetup group got smaller but more concentrated with the most passionate people, and that's how a lot of us really connected.
What was your background like before you got into Bitcoin?
I was born in Japan, grew up in the Middle East, and did school in Bahrain and England before coming to Canada for university. My dad worked in oil, my grandfather was born in China, and my dad in the Belgian Congo, so we moved around a lot. I was always into math, physics, and computer programming, which I picked up at 18.
How did you first come across Bitcoin?
I think I first saw it around 2011 while exploring the deep web through Tor. I didn't think much of it at first, but later friends were talking about it on Facebook, so I looked into it more. Once I saw the 21 million coin limit, I realized if Bitcoin replaced even a fraction of credit card payments, its value would skyrocket, so I bought some.
What happened after you got into Bitcoin, before the exchange stuff?
Some friends and I pooled bitcoin I had to buy a Bitcoin ATM, and we launched Toronto's second Bitcoin ATM called Bumblebee Exchange, set up inside Snakes and Lattes, a well known board game cafe. It worked in some ways, but we ended up with drug dealers using it and banging on the door at 2am, which the venue did not appreciate, so we eventually had to move out.
Any interesting exchange stories from those early years?
There was a bug at Cavirtex where I accidentally withdrew 900 extra bitcoins. I kept withdrawing and it kept sending transactions. At the end of the month the CEO called asking if I remembered doing that, and I said yes and sent it all back. I kind of regret it now since Cavirtex is no longer operational.
You mentioned an exclusive story, what was it?
I was the one who pushed Bitcoin above 1,000 dollars for the first time on Mt. Gox in 2014. There was a sell wall and I bought straight through it. That same day a BBC article reported Bitcoin had hit 1,000 dollars. It had already happened on Chinese exchanges, but on Mt. Gox, which Western media watched, I was the one who did it.
What lessons did you take from your Mt. Gox experience?
The big lesson is to hold your own keys rather than leaving funds on exchanges. When you control your Bitcoin, you basically know a very large number that lets you sign transactions and move funds. It is a bit convoluted, but using something like a hardware wallet or even a paper wallet to hold your own private keys really matters.
What are you working on now with DevCash?
I'm building DevCash, a currency meant to bootstrap a developer economy. I want to pay bounties in DevCash to developers who help build the ecosystem, since I don't have Ethereum or Bitcoin to pay with but I do have plenty of DevCash. The idea is people do speculative work now for a token that could be valuable later, similar to speculative investing in early Bitcoin.
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