High school dropout Erik Finman turned $1,000 into millions by investing in bitcoin. At just 12 years old in 2011, he received the money from his grandmother and bought bitcoin when it was only $10 per BTC. His interest in bitcoin sparked during a protest in Washington DC, where he saw someone wearing a bitcoin T-shirt. Determined to prove his teacher wrong, who had scolded him for poor performance in school, Erik made a deal with his parents: if he earned a million dollars before turning 18, he wouldn't have to return to school or attend college. By cashing in $100,000 worth of bitcoin, he launched Botangle, an educational platform, and later chose to receive 300 BTC instead of $100,000 when offered to sell his company. This decision paid off when bitcoin's value surged, making Erik a millionaire at age 17. He opted out of college, traveled the world, bought luxury items like an Audi R8, and saw his net worth soar into the eight figures through his bitcoin investments. Erik is now an influential investor in Silicon Valley cryptocurrency startups and has advocated for cryptocurrency legislation.