A 23-year-old individual involved in cryptocurrency has proudly displayed an orange flag adorned with the Bitcoin logo at an impressive elevation of 8,849 meters, which is the summit of Mount Everest.
On May 23, Dadvan Yousuf took to X to share the news of his successful climb to the highest peak in the world, accomplished on May 20. Accompanied by sherpas and fellow climbers, Yousuf utilized his time at the summit to showcase two flags: one representing Kurdistan and the other featuring the BTC logo.
Interestingly, other climbers inquired about the “memecoin pepe” and sought advice on the best place to purchase it while standing at the highest point on Earth. A spokesperson for Yousuf informed Cointelegraph that the sherpas showed great enthusiasm for the concept of Bitcoin and displayed visible happiness.
Yousuf stated that the purpose of his expedition was to draw attention to the global disparity in access to financial education. Having been born in Iraq and currently operating a business based in Dubai, this Bitcoin enthusiast’s reported net worth exceeded $300 million as of January 2022.
Over the past two decades, the issue of overtourism has become increasingly problematic on Mount Everest. With the summit now being featured on social media platforms, many inexperienced climbers or first-timers are unprepared for the challenging conditions.
Yousuf revealed that it took roughly 50 days to reach the summit, allowing him ample time to acclimatize to the thin air. While over 7,000 climbers have successfully scaled the peak since Sir Edmund Hillary first did so in 1953, more than 300 people have tragically lost their lives in the attempt.
“I fell down the Hillary step twice and came close to death on multiple occasions during the expedition,” Yousuf shared with Cointelegraph. “I almost lost my fingers to frostbite. I owe a great deal of gratitude to my sherpas, who assisted me throughout.”
Although crypto enthusiasts have not previously ventured to such heights as Everest, some have utilized their climbs to promote digital assets. In 2023, a climber partially financed their journey to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania with Bitcoin as part of an initiative to raise awareness for financial literacy. Additionally, in 2018, three individuals placed a Ledger wallet at the Everest summit, although the wallet was not visible in the videos shared by Yousuf with Cointelegraph.
According to data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro, the price of Bitcoin stood at $67,879 at the time of publication. The cryptocurrency had reached an all-time high price of $73,738 on March 14.
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