The 2025 cryptocurrency market has long left behind its wild west era. Behind the global market cap surpassing $3.8 trillion lies the clarification of regulatory policies, and more importantly, the strategic layouts and gambles of a group of key players. Some have heavily invested in Bitcoin in the name of corporations, others have built a stablecoin empire that permeates the industry, and still others have driven the restructuring of regulatory frameworks to accelerate the integration of the crypto world with traditional finance. The choices of these key figures not only determine their own wealth landscapes but also profoundly influence the direction of the entire industry.

Michael Saylor: The Devoted Believer in “DCA” Bitcoin with Corporate Funds

In the field of institutional crypto investment, Michael Saylor and the company he leads, MicroStrategy, are unquestionably indispensable benchmarks. Since this traditional tech founder led the company to launch its Bitcoin reserve strategy in 2020, he has never stopped increasing holdings—even elevating this strategy to new heights in 2025 by buying an average of 641 Bitcoins per day.

According to documents disclosed by MicroStrategy in December 2025, as of mid-month, the company has accumulated 671,268 Bitcoins, adding over 223,000 new Bitcoins throughout the year at a weighted average purchase price of approximately $99,908 per coin. Even as Bitcoin prices surged above the $110,000 mark, MicroStrategy persisted with its scheduled purchases, missing only 1 week out of 42 trading weeks this year. This “ignore short-term volatility, hold long-term” strategy has yielded substantial returns for the company: based on current market prices, its Bitcoin reserves are worth about $60.05 billion, with unrealized profits reaching $9.73 billion and a yield rate of nearly 19%.

Saylor’s logic has always been clear and unwavering: treat Bitcoin as a “long-term reserve asset” to hedge against inflation risks and optimize the company’s balance sheet. Inspired by him, a growing number of traditional enterprises have followed suit in deploying crypto assets, and MicroStrategy has completely transformed from a business intelligence software company to the world’s largest corporate Bitcoin holder, becoming a crucial bridge connecting the traditional tech industry and the crypto world. Saylor himself has also redefined his influence in the business world through this forward-looking strategy, emerging as a “pioneer” of the institutional crypto investment wave.

Giancarlo Devasini & Paolo Ardoino: Wealth Symbiosis of the Invisible Empire and the Public Face

If Saylor represents traditional enterprises’ embrace of crypto assets, then Giancarlo Devasini and Paolo Ardoino are the “wealth models” of the native crypto ecosystem. The Tether (USDT) they co-founded, as the world’s largest stablecoin, has now become the “infrastructure” of the crypto market. The company’s plan to sell 3% of its shares to raise $20 billion has revealed its $500 billion valuation, surpassing tech giants like OpenAI and SpaceX.

The 61-year-old Devasini is the “invisible mastermind” behind the Tether empire. This former plastic surgeon abandoned his medical career for IT trading in 1992. After experiencing entrepreneurial failures, he invested in the Bitfinex exchange in 2012 and co-launched USDT with Ardoino in 2014. He is extremely low-key, with no social media accounts, yet holds 47% of Tether’s shares. Based on the $500 billion valuation, his personal net worth reaches $235 billion, enough to rank among the top five richest people globally. At key junctures in Tether’s development—whether convincing banks to open accounts or addressing crises like hacks and regulatory investigations—Devasini stabilized the situation with decisive, even controversial, measures, ultimately consolidating his absolute authority.

In stark contrast to Devasini’s low profile is Paolo Ardoino, Tether’s current CEO. This technical genius is known in the industry for his workaholic attitude—submitting over 100 lines of code per day on GitHub in 2017, totaling more than 40,000 submissions that year. From a senior developer at Bitfinex to Tether’s CTO, and then succeeding as CEO in 2023, Ardoino has fortified the technical foundation of stablecoins with code. Meanwhile, he speaks out actively on social media to address market doubts and convey corporate confidence, becoming Tether’s “public face” for external communication. He holds approximately 20% of Tether’s shares, with a potential net worth of $100 billion—all behind nearly a decade of work without a formal vacation.

Devasini’s capital operations and Ardoino’s technical support form a perfect complement. Leading Tether from scratch, they have built USDT into a “crypto dollar” with a circulation exceeding $170 billion, not only rewriting their own wealth fates but also profoundly influencing the liquidity structure of the crypto market.

Paul Atkins: The “Industry Guardian” Reshaping Regulatory Frameworks

The healthy development of the crypto industry cannot do without regulatory guidance. In 2025, Paul Atkins, Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), emerged as a key figure driving the clarification of industry regulations. The “Project Crypto” he launched after taking office is regarded as the clearest crypto regulatory strategy in U.S. history to date.

Atkins’ core philosophy is “clarify attributes, simplify regulations, and support innovation.” He clarified that most digital assets are not securities, avoiding the cumbersome process of previous “case-by-case reviews”; meanwhile, he promoted the establishment of stablecoin and on-chain settlement systems to help the U.S. dollar consolidate its dominant position in the crypto market. Additionally, he actively promoted inter-agency cooperation, concluding long-term investigations into leading industry projects like Coinbase and Aave, and creating a more stable development environment for the industry.

In Atkins’ view, for the United States to maintain global financial leadership, it must establish a regulatory advantage in the digital asset space. His regulatory approach has not only alleviated policy uncertainty in the industry but also attracted more traditional financial institutions to enter with confidence, becoming a key driver of the 2025 crypto market expansion. Compared to the “wealth creators” in the market, Atkins is more like a “guardian” of the crypto industry, defining boundaries and safeguarding development with clear rules.

Industry Insights Behind the Figures: Trends and Risks Coexist

The experiences of these key figures reflect three core trends in the 2025 crypto industry: first, the accelerated institutionalization process—traditional enterprises represented by Saylor are entering the market, making crypto assets part of mainstream asset allocation; second, the prominent value of ecological infrastructure—Tether’s rise proves that core tools serving market liquidity can nurture enormous commercial value; third, the gradual balance between regulation and innovation—the regulatory framework promoted by Atkins provides the possibility for the industry to move from “wild growth” to “compliant development.”

Yet risks have never disappeared. The ownership of wealth by mysterious shareholders in Tether’s equity structure remains unaccounted for; MicroStrategy’s heavy concentration strategy faces the risk of sharp Bitcoin price fluctuations; and the case of Trump’s personal meme coin TRUMP plummeting 82.4% further warns of the speculative traps behind celebrity influence.

For average investors, the stories of these key figures may be irreplicable, but their strategic choices are worth learning from: understand industry trends, adhere to long-term value, and respect market risks. Crypto’s wealth myth continues, but only with rational cognition and compliant participation can one go further in this wealth gamble.

Food for Thought: Where do you think the next key breakthrough in the crypto industry will occur—technological innovation, regulatory implementation, or ecological integration? Share your views in the comments!