A US Soldier’s Investment Story: Missiles and Stock Charts Soar Together, Military Bases Become the Craziest Spots for Cryptocurrency Trading in the US | Bee Network
Luke Air Force Base, located in Phoenix, was one of the regions with the highest rate of cryptocurrency filings on U.S. tax forms in 2021.
Military personnel fueled the cryptocurrency price surge that began in the fall of 2020 and peaked in 2021. According to an analysis of IRS data by The Wall Street Journal, in 2020, eight of the 25 zip codes with the highest rates of reporting cryptocurrency income or disposals were located near military bases. Bitcoin’s price roughly quadrupled that year. By 2021, that number had risen to 11 of the 25. IRS data shows that near Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico, 16.3% of individual income tax returns in 2021 showed records of receiving, selling, exchanging, or disposing of cryptocurrency; the percentages were even higher near Luke Air Force Base in Arizona (19.4%) and Vandenberg Space Force Base in California (18.1%). In contrast, only 4.1% of tax returns nationwide checked the same box. Military bases lost that dominance in 2022—according to the latest annual data from the IRS. That year, cryptocurrency prices plummeted, and the number of people reporting cryptocurrency transactions, both inside and outside the base, dropped sharply. But that year’s cryptocurrency craze—alongside the concurrent Meme stock boom—created an entire generation of military personnel addicted to investing. While many military personnel are long-term investors, primarily in index funds, some engage in short-term speculation or invest large sums of assets in a very limited number of stocks or cryptocurrencies. They are often young, have only experienced market upturns, and have few hedging strategies. “They will definitely suffer if the market experiences a significant correction,” said Brian O’Neill, a financial advisor and veteran Air Force officer. Some have experienced the pain of losing a significant amount of money in a bad bet, but soldiers are more inclined to talk about their victories than their defeats. “There’s a culture of boasting here,” O’Neill says.Saunders recently used his extra income to buy a Hummer, both to reward himself and to support his side business as a KOL.
This Coast Guard member records investment and financial advice videos in his home studio in St. Petersburg, Florida, and the surrounding area.
Saunders made profits from Tesla stock, but he says he lost over $10,000 in a single day last winter while trading a leveraged bet on MicroStrategy (the company that buys Bitcoin, now called Strategy ). He now mostly invests in stock index funds. He also earns an extra five-figure monthly income as an influencer on TikTok and Instagram. His specialty is providing financial advice videos for military personnel. Action hotspot Military bases are fertile ground for investment frenzy. They’re full of young people—many of whom are naturally adventurous—with plenty of time and disposable income, and few taboos when discussing personal finances, because military salaries are transparent and determined by rank. While the military offers a guaranteed pension after 20 years and unparalleled job security, they don’t offer hefty salaries or six-figure year-end bonuses. Military personnel have long been active in the investment field. Some have used Veterans Affairs loans with zero down payment to purchase rental properties. In the early 1980s, during a period of high inflation, soldiers confined for months in nuclear missile submarines passed the time by discussing gold bars and rough diamonds. By the late 1990s, technology stocks had become the object of nationwide fervor. But over the past two decades, two intertwined waves have greatly fueled the culture of affluence in the military: the rise of websites that lowered the barriers to entry and later apps like Robinhood; and the ongoing War on Terror. Beginning in the early 21st century, hundreds of thousands of troops were deployed to remote bases in Iraq and Afghanistan. They received dangerous mission allowances, family separation subsidies, and exemption from federal income tax. Suddenly, they had thousands of dollars in extra income and began looking for investment opportunities. F-16 fighter pilot Shawn Walsh opened his first securities account in 2008 while stationed in Iraq. His primary mission was bombing insurgents, but between sorties, he would often spend hours in full flight gear in a small shed just a short run away from his aircraft. There, with nothing else to do, he and other pilots would discuss various investment strategies.Several military bases, including Vandenberg Space Force Base on California’s central coast, fueled the cryptocurrency craze between 2020 and 2021.
In 2013, Air Force transport pilot Spencer Reese transported soldiers between Kyrgyzstan and Afghanistan. “Every mission is a crash course on different investment strategies,” he said.Some people told him they invested in gas stations and 7-Eleven convenience stores; another recommended covered call options; and still others liked Bitcoin. During long flights, Reese would read some investment books.
The military does offer basic training courses on saving, budgeting, and investing, but word-of-mouth is often a more popular source of advice. While officers and soldiers are highly competitive, they also share strong camaraderie—even in the investment arena. If someone makes money, they’ll tell others because they want their comrades to do the same. Officers often pull out their phones to show others their investment account balances.
Cryptocurrencies spread like wildfire through the military in the early 2020s. Navy Lieutenant Commander Zach Rodriguez invested over $100,000—half of his family savings—in tokens like Chainlink, Polkadot, and Quant. His interest in cryptocurrencies was sparked by a friend during a Pacific cruise aboard an aircraft carrier.
A photo of Major Zach Rodriguez next to a helicopter in 2020, marking the beginning of his cryptocurrency learning journey as Pacific Patrol officer.
He initially profited handsomely as the value of Bitcoin soared, only to suffer a subsequent crash. He also revealed that he had $250,000 worth of cryptocurrency stolen by scammers. Now, this helicopter pilot has become a “Buddhist zen holder”—focusing on investing in Bitcoin and Bitcoin-related companies, and stating that his assets have risen to approximately $1 million.
The craze for Meme stocks swept through the military with similar force. In 2021, Air Force Medical Services Administrator Sergeant Durelle Bailey was in a classroom at George Mason University with more than twenty active-duty military personnel pursuing their master’s degrees when one of them mentioned stock in an educational technology company called Chegg. The stock price had fallen, and according to that person, it was an excellent opportunity to buy on the dip.
“He said, ‘Hurry up, buy now, or it’ll go back up,'” Bailey recalled. Instantly, eight or nine people pulled out their phones and bought the stock.
Sergeant Durelle Bailey, photographed in Arizona in 2019. Over the past decade, her savings have grown from zero to a six-figure net worth.
Bailey invested several hundred dollars but ultimately lost money. Chegg once exceeded $113 per share in early 2021, then fell below $25 by the end of the year, and its recent share price is closer to $1.
Wherever Bailey goes, stocks and cryptocurrencies are always on the conversation. “We talk about them in the barracks, in the gym, and in the mess hall,” he says.
When Bailey joined the Air Force in 2015, he had no savings. Today, he and his wife have a solid six-figure net worth, largely thanks to stock index funds. The 31-year-old says, “Our future is secure.”
New wealth and new concernsNear the military base, signs of rising wealth are everywhere.
Eric Rawlings, an Army warrant officer and helicopter pilot stationed in Colorado and currently deployed to the Middle East, said he recently bought a $10,000 Rolex to celebrate a milestone: for the first time, he earned more money from stock investments than from his military pay.
He wasn’t alone. “The number of cars driving around the base is ridiculous,” the 29-year-old said.
Warrant Officer Eric Rawlings is wearing a Rolex he bought to celebrate a successful investment.
Some financial advisors and veterans worry that the good times won’t last. Price-to-earnings ratios are near record highs, and stock indices are increasingly dominated by a few tech giants.
“I’m worried we might be facing a bubble burst,” said retired Army officer David Ashcraft.
During the tech boom of the late 1990s, Ashcraft, then a young lieutenant, bought shares in Cisco and Sun Microsystems. After the market crash, his IRA account value plummeted from $10,000 to about $3,000. Since then, he has only invested in index funds.
He said, “If someone tells me they’ve put all their money into cryptocurrency or a few stocks, I’ll still be worried.”
Bonds have largely fallen out of favor among military personnel because they have underperformed stocks in recent years. Few also hold large amounts of cash.
Many military personnel believe they can take greater risks because they have job security and a guaranteed pension after 20 years of service. Even conservative investors are exposed to higher risks due to market structure. McCulloh, a Space Force officer stationed in New Mexico, says several technology and energy stocks now make up a large portion of his net worth simply because they have risen so much.
However, high-risk bets can still backfire in strong markets. In 2023, Moises Gonzalez, a Marine Corps truck driver stationed in Albany, Georgia, earned $38,000 a year but lost $20,000 in a single day trading gold and stocks.
On the equipment in the base dormitory, Moises Gonzalez experienced the highs and lows of intraday trading.
“There were days when I really couldn’t hold on, because I just kept losing money, kept losing money, kept losing money,” he said.
His largest single-day loss was $15,000, and his largest single-day profit was $6,000.
He set up three monitors in his base room—a sight that once made a colonel frown during a routine inspection—and he also brought his laptop to the vehicle dispatch yard where he worked so he could make trades during the early morning downtime.
As time went on, Gonzalez’s skills improved. In 2024, he earned $30,000 through day trading. A few months ago, he left the Marine Corps and moved to Hawaii to start trading full-time. The 25-year-old hopes to earn $10,000 a month in the market, but hasn’t reached that goal yet.
He said, “I can make $7,000 in three or four days, and then lose it all on the fifth day.”
Эта статья взята из интернета: A US Soldier’s Investment Story: Missiles and Stock Charts Soar Together, Military Bases Become the Craziest Spots for Cryptocurrency Trading in the US Related: OKX Web3 Security Team: Protect your private keys like you would your eyes. A Chainalysis report in July 2025 revealed that 17%-23% of Bitcoin is permanently dormant due to forgotten private keys or damaged devices. Since private keys represent asset ownership, once lost, they cannot be reset, and there is no customer service to help recover them. Once known to others, stolen funds are almost impossible to recover. The on-chain world gives us freedom, but it also places complete responsibility in our hands. As the on-chain ecosystem flourishes, various asset theft incidents occur frequently, but people often only realize it after the fact, and it’s difficult to pinpoint where the problem occurred—was the private key leaked? A phishing link clicked? A Trojan program downloaded? Or some other operational error? The OKX Web3 security team hopes to raise awareness of private key security through… Анализ ## биткоин# crypto# defiРынок #Токен #© Copyright NoticeМассив Pre Cryptocurrency and Stock Market Indicators | Strategy’s total BTC holdings reach 650,000; Bitmine increased its ETH holdings by 96,798 last week, bringing its total holdings to 3,726,499 (December 2nd). Next Is this a good time to buy at the bottom? In-depth analysis of DeFi tokens with "real returns". Related articles 2025 US Interest Rate Cuts: A Data-Driven Policy Shift and the Fed’s Risk Rebalancing 6086cf14eb90bc67ca4fc62b 17 717 1 Matrixport Market Watch: Crypto Asset Trends Amid Macroeconomic Pressures and Market Divergence 6086cf14eb90bc67ca4fc62b 15 888 Bitcoin is about to choose a direction; how to respond flexibly? | Invited Analysis 6086cf14eb90bc67ca4fc62b 16 576 1 Dialogue with Tether CEO: Let each employee generate $100 million in profits 6086cf14eb90bc67ca4fc62b 16 616 A quick look at the eight contenders for the Solana spot ETF 6086cf14eb90bc67ca4fc62b 30 233 ГорячаяBitcoins market share remains high, is there still a chance for altcoins to explode? 6086cf14eb90bc67ca4fc62b 31 017 2 Последние статьи Did Jane Street “Manipulate” BTC? Decoding the AP System, Understanding the Power Struggle Behind ETF Creation and Redemption Pricing 1hrs ago 87 Stop Comparing Bitcoin to Gold—It’s Now a High-Volatility Software Stock 1hrs ago 114 Matrixport Research: $25 Billion Gamma Unwinding Imminent, Liquidity Yet to Return Behind the Rebound 1hrs ago 100 ERC-5564: Ethereum’s Stealth Era Has Arrived, Receiving Addresses No Longer ‘Exposed’ 1hrs ago 100 Hong Kong Regulatory Green Light: Asseto Enables DL Holdings to Achieve Compliance for Two RWA Business Implementations 1hrs ago 90 Популярные сайтыTempoLighterGAIBПланерПланкаRaylsBCPokerVooi Bee.com Крупнейший в мире портал Web3. Партнеры CoinCarp Binance CoinMarketCap CoinGecko Coinlive Доспехи Загрузите приложение Bee Network APP и начните путешествие по web3 Белая книга Роли ЧАСТО ЗАДАВАЕМЫЕ ВОПРОСЫ © 2021-2026. Все права защищены. Политика конфиденциальности | Условия предоставления услуг Скачать приложение Bee Network APP и начните путешествие по web3 Крупнейший в мире портал Web3 Партнеры CoinCarp Binance CoinMarketCap CoinGecko Coinlive Armors Белая книга Роли ЧАСТО ЗАДАВАЕМЫЕ ВОПРОСЫ © 2021-2026. Все права защищены. Политика конфиденциальности | Условия предоставления услуг Поиск ПоискInSiteOnChainСоциальнаяНовости Hot to you: Охотники за воздухом Анализ данных Криптознаменитости Детектор-ловушка Русский English 繁體中文 简体中文 日本語 Tiếng Việt العربية 한국어 Bahasa Indonesia हिन्दी اردو Русский智能索引记录
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