How a 70-year-old cryptocurrency owner increased her profits 10 times

Esther Freeman, a 71-year-old resident of Israel, managed to increase her cryptocurrency wealth 10 times. In 2021, the woman invested $ 3,000 in bitcoin, and in eight years, her investments grew to more than $ 320,000 (NIS 1,184,992). Currently, the pensioner’s income is about $ 160,000, all due to the fall in the price of the flagship asset.

The woman told us how she joined the cryptocurrency ecosystem: «I listened to my son and nephews, young guys, and said I would at least try it. I didn' t have any knowledge on the subject, because I’m very ordinary.»

However, the Hapoalim Bank, with which Freeman cooperates, believes that the Israeli woman’s profits were obtained illegally. The financial institution claims that her initial investment in bitcoins was made with cash that was obtained illegally.

«The characteristics of virtual (i.e. digital) currencies allow them to be transferred anonymously and without supervision, often bypassing the use of financial instruments that are subject to the anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing regime,» the bank commented.

Freeman, in turn, hired a lawyer and filed a lawsuit against the bank, insisting that she «has been a loyal customer for many years.» The woman claims that she planned to invest the stolen funds in real estate for one of her sons.

However, not all retirees are lucky in their attempts to make money on cryptocurrency. Earlier, we told you about a 55-year-old Hong Kong resident who lost almost HK$ 7 million on a fraudulent crypto project that «guaranteed» a profit of tens of thousands of dollars. The victim was persuaded to create an account on the website in order to invest in cryptocurrency with a guaranteed return. The woman was assured that she would be paid $ 300 daily in addition to the guaranteed profit. However, in just two months, the pensioner lost all her savings.