This may be the worst wildfire in California's history.
The city most affected by the fires, Pacific Palisades, has seen 75% of its houses turned to rubble; a new round of seasonal strong winds has driven the wildfires eastward; in addition to Palisades, there are currently two other wildfire areas in Los Angeles, with surrounding residents facing severe challenges.
In the face of nature's fury, even some of the wealthiest communities in Los Angeles have not been spared. Those mansions that once symbolized the wealth and achievements of European and American stars and cryptocurrency giants now stand at the frontlines of disaster.
On the infamous streets of Los Angeles affected by wildfires, in addition to these European and American stars, there are also some cryptocurrency giants and newly wealthy individuals. They once lived in mansions that showcased business success, now facing the direct threat of relentless natural disasters.
Moonbirds founder: residence completely destroyed
"Unfortunately, I lost everything in the #PacificPalisades fire. There is nothing left here." Moonbirds founder Kevin Rose uploaded video scenes of his burned house and community, writing beside the video.
As shown in his video, Rose's residence in Los Angeles was completely destroyed in the California wildfires.
Rose began his career by founding the website Digg, later becoming a venture capitalist and one of the earliest investors in Twitter and Square. He gained prominence after creating the Moonbirds project during the early NFT bull market in December 2021.
Last year, Rose sold Moonbirds to Yuga Labs. As part of the transaction, Rose became an advisor to Yuga Labs during a "brief transition period." Shortly after the project launched, it quickly attracted over $500 million in sales through a series of NFT sales events and secured $50 million in funding from Andreessen Horowitz (A16Z).
Rose's fame peaked with the success of the Moonbirds project. During this time, Rose purchased a new home in the Brentwood community of Los Angeles for $16.5 million. This celebrity enclave is known for its luxurious properties, and the house Rose bought features a modern design with over 7,600 square feet of space, shaped like an "L," with most of its walls made of glass, offering panoramic views of Los Angeles. Unfortunately, this beautiful residence was completely destroyed in this fire.
What many people do not know is that in a previous podcast episode, he revealed the immense pressure he faced from engaging in NFT projects. He candidly discussed health issues such as anxiety, irritable bowel syndrome, high blood pressure, and brain aneurysms that he experienced due to the explosive growth of NFT transactions, and he even tried ketamine therapy, which ultimately made him feel a sense of relief he had not felt since his teenage years.
It seems that due to previous therapeutic experiences, Rose also shared some philosophical views on accepting uncertainty during this fire on social media, hoping to find spiritual freedom and peace through this approach. "When we understand the truth of uncertainty, we become free."
Ma Ji Da Ge: 16 kilometers from the fire zone
When it comes to NFT celebrities in the Chinese community, the name of Ma Ji Da Ge is well-known.
In June 2023, Taiwanese artist and NFT tycoon Huang Licheng (Ma Ji Da Ge) purchased a mansion in the famous Bird Streets community in Los Angeles for $25 million. This luxurious villa boasts 14,000 square feet of spacious area, with facilities including a wine cellar, marble bar, and large gym, featuring five bedrooms and eight bathrooms.
It is understood that this mansion located in Bird Streets was initially listed for $34 million and was just completed in early 2022. However, according to photos, Ma Ji Da Ge acquired it a year later for about 75% less than the asking price and became neighbors with other celebrities like Foxconn founder Terry Gou, the Winklevoss twins, and LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault.
From the photos, the entire house features beige and brown as the primary color scheme, and the mansion's interior space is quite spacious, designed in an open layout with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the entire Hollywood Hills, creating a very pleasant atmosphere.
Although Ma Ji Da Ge owns numerous mansions, during today's wildfire season, this mansion located on Bird Street, just 16 kilometers from the Pacific Palisades wildfire area, may be one of the most concerning for him.
Ankr founder: 14 kilometers from the fire zone
In the neighborhood adjacent to the Bird Streets mansion community, Ma Ji Da Ge has a neighbor in the cryptocurrency circle, Song Yunfan, the founder of Ankr.
On November 22, 2021, this 27-year-old cryptocurrency entrepreneur purchased a mansion in a wealthy area of Los Angeles for $12 million. The house is located near the hills known as Doheny Estates, adjacent to the famous Bird Streets area. The house was completed in early 2019 and was initially listed at nearly $17 million, but after being on the market for over two years with multiple price adjustments, it was sold to Song Yunfan.
According to reports from Dirt, this villa was designed by XTEN Architecture, covering a total area of 7,500 square feet with luxurious interior decorations, including five bedrooms and six bathrooms. The design of the house emphasizes modernity, with large glass walls that not only ensure ample natural light but also provide spectacular urban views. Its architectural style complements the surrounding Hollywood Hills mansions, featuring amenities such as a spacious living area, a dining area with a marble bar, a fully equipped kitchen, a private cinema, and an underground garage with epoxy flooring, large enough to accommodate multiple vehicles.
Song Yunfan's personal achievements are also remarkable. A graduate of the University of California, Berkeley, he was previously a software engineer at Amazon, not only founding Ankr coin but also co-founding the NFT auction platform Bounce. In 2019, he was named one of Forbes' "30 Under 30," establishing his influence in the global technology and cryptocurrency fields.
This luxurious villa is about 14.5 kilometers from the Pacific Palisades fire zone. As of Saturday noon, firefighters have controlled 11% of the fire, meaning that the villa of Ankr's founder is still safe.
Coinbase CEO: 25 kilometers from the fire zone
A few months ago, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong held a grand wedding on the lawn of his Los Angeles villa, which cost $133 million and is located in a city ravaged by wildfires. Fortunately, this luxurious villa was not affected by the wildfires.
This mansion located at 10671 Chalon Road, Los Angeles, CA 90077 not only spans nearly five acres but also includes a 19,000-square-foot main house and a 6,600-square-foot guest mansion, with at least 10 bedrooms and 13 bathrooms. The estate is fully equipped with amenities including a tennis court, two swimming pools, a car park, a home theater, as well as a spa and gym.
The design of this villa was crafted by the renowned British architect John Pawson, known for his signature minimalist aesthetics. The villa’s design features a "stacked cube" structure with large glass walls and minimalist interior decor paired with spacious oak furnishings, creating a modern yet comfortable living environment.
The villa originally belonged to Hidetaka Tomita, the founder of the Japanese job placement agency Dip Corporation, who purchased the property for $85 million in 2018 and later sold it to Armstrong for $133 million. This transaction is considered one of the most expensive single-family residential transactions in Los Angeles history.
This luxurious villa is located approximately 25.35 kilometers from the Pacific Palisades fire zone, typically about a 22-minute drive under good traffic conditions. The mansion offers expansive views, and sitting behind the spacious glass walls, watching the spectacular black smoke to the west, Brian Armstrong may have felt a twinge of anxiety, but fortunately, he and his family are currently safe.
Former CEO of Kraken: mansion in jeopardy
Former CEO of Kraken may be one of the most anxious figures among the projects in the cryptocurrency space, with Jesse Powell's luxurious residence in the famous Brentwood community of Los Angeles located very close to Pacific Palisades.
This co-founder of the cryptocurrency exchange Kraken has stepped down from the CEO position, but his life is anything but calm. In March 2023, his residence was searched by the FBI as part of an investigation into his alleged hacking and cyberstalking of a nonprofit arts organization.
And this mansion, which was previously searched by the FBI, is now under threat from wildfires, as it is located close to an area prone to wildfires. According to reports, Powell's residence is only a few miles from the Pacific Palisades fire zone, and the street has currently been closed.
This distance is enough to make any resident feel uneasy. Especially during wildfire season, continuous fire reports and tense evacuation alerts may put unprecedented pressure on this important figure in technology and cryptocurrency.
Jesse Powell also appears to be one of the most concerned individuals in the cryptocurrency community regarding the fires; looking through his recent tweets, they primarily criticize the government's poor performance in controlling the fire and the situation of the affected people, showing his concern and anxiety about the current situation. Therefore, we speculate that in the years following the FBI search, Jesse Powell has not sold this property in Los Angeles, which is currently in danger.
PayPal founder: 16 kilometers from the fire zone
As a renowned venture capitalist and co-founder of PayPal, also known as the 'mafia' that kicked Elon Musk out of PayPal, Peter Thiel holds significant status in Silicon Valley.
However, in recent years, Peter Thiel has chosen to publicly support Trump politically, becoming increasingly estranged from Silicon Valley, and often actively praises the disruptive potential of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology in public forums, supporting them as alternatives to traditional finance and government structures. Peter Thiel's investments in Bitcoin and blockchain technology have also increased, and his venture capital firm Founders Fund is one of the first mainstream institutions to recognize and invest in Bitcoin, currently gaining more influence in the cryptocurrency field.
In 2018, to distance himself from the left-leaning environment, Peter Thiel moved his home and investment company to Los Angeles. His residence in Los Angeles is a luxurious home located in the Hollywood area, which Peter Thiel purchased in 2011 for $11.5 million.
The estate is located above Sunset Boulevard and is equipped with various modern amenities, including a large master suite, dining room, family activity room, gourmet kitchen, and swimming pool, featuring four bedrooms and five bathrooms, with indoor and outdoor living spaces filled with the atmosphere of the Hawaiian Islands. The 5,870 square foot lot includes a swimming pool and two driveways leading to different streets, making it a rare prime location in the area.
The geographical location of this mansion places it only 16 kilometers from the nearest fire zone in Palisades, posing a potential risk to residential safety.
Others
As wildfires spread rapidly across California, not only threatening the safety of millions of residents but also severely impacting many companies and individuals in the cryptocurrency industry. In this disaster, many members of the cryptocurrency community not only lost their homes but even some irreplaceable assets such as hardware wallets.
Employees at the Santa Monica Bitcoin Office in Los Angeles and Swan Bitcoin, a company that hosted the Pacific Bitcoin conference in Santa Monica, are located directly south of the Palisades and Sunset fire zones, under threat of wildfires. In addition, the headquarters of blockchain service provider BlockDaemon and cryptocurrency game developer SuperVerse are also located in Los Angeles, while blockchain-based identity authentication and tokenization company SpringLabs is located nearby in Marina del Rey.