How this 12-year-old’s crypto fortune doubled in 24 hours

By George Mathias

A schoolboy who created NFTs worth $5m has seen his cryptocurrency stash more than double in value - since the election of Donald Trump.

Benyamin Ahmed, 15, was taught to code by his dad, Imran, 48, when he was just five and since then has amassed a fortune in cryptocurrency.

Following the election of Donald Trump, the price of Bitcoin has exploded.

It's said to be down to Trump's hiring of cryptocurrency lobbyist Paul Atkins to lead the Securities and Exchange Commission - a move seen as giving the green light to the highly volatile virtual currency.

On Wednesday the price of Bitcoin hit an all-time high of $103,619 (£81,363) - and the President-elect is thought to be a strong advocate of the currency.

Despite his stash exploding in value the schoolboy hasn't withdrawn a single pound from his fortune.

It's all tied up in a cryptocurrency called Ethereum - a rival cryptocurrency of Bitcoin.

Benyamin - who has lectured at Oxford University on NFTs - reckons it's the future of currency, but has vowed not to cash out - despite his asset effectively doubling in value.

Benyamin, from Pinner, Greater London, who doesn't want to reveal the new value, said: "Since the Trump election my portfolio is up 56 percent, but I refuse to cash out.

"I already rode the wave from top to bottom before and know the same could happen again but I'm in it for the long-term. "

The teen genius plans to leave his fortune where it is for now because he said he's only in the game to build his skills and experience.

Dad Imran, a programmer, said: "He's never sold any of it - it's looking quite healthy at the moment.

"He’s stayed true to his word and is not selling yet, maybe in five to 10 years he might but at the moment he's not really got that many expenses or living costs."

Benyamin said: "My friends at school know what I do and they have congratulated me.

"Although I don't think everyone really understands it!"

Benyamin previously made a small fortune trading in so-called NFTs or non-fungible tokens and released his own series called 'Weird Whales' in July 2021.

The 3,350 different colorful NFTs featured pixelated whales, and were initially sold for $60 apiece.

But as demand rose so did the price - with some of the collection selling for as much as $20,000 when the value was highest.

In total, his Weird Whales collection has been traded by different buyers for over $5million.

He gets commission - like royalties - every time they are re-sold.

Imran said: "His accountant says it's like a computer game to him, they don't really know the real value it."

Imran says he is leaving financial decisions totally up to his son, who at the moment is just focussing on doing his GCSEs.

"I don't care if he doesn’t sell," Imran said.

"He doesn’t really need it for anything yet, perhaps he will in the five years if he wants to start a business."

According to Imran, his son closely follows crypto markets, allowing him to predict when prices are likely to rise and fall.

Benyamin said he sees a "bright future" in the world of crypto.

"I think with every industry, the digital versions of things always perform the best," he said.

"With digital art it has a lot more utility and certification - I can just hop online and see where anything came from.

"Here, anyone can join the network - you can be a refugee or a rich person sat in your mansion and it doesn't make a difference.

"Everyone has the same rights and permissions as anyone else."

Despite his coding genius, Benyamin says he is not glued to a screen all day.

"I do not take my phone to school or to my bedroom so I get a lot of downtime," he said.

"School is really good and I find it difficult to get bored - I enjoy math and computers obviously, but I also love history and Latin.

"After school, I usually spend a couple of hours doing homework, I then get back on Twitter and Discord to connect with the Weird Whales and NFT community.

"I have a daily routine where I complete one coding exercise, read a few pages and do an online math challenge.

"I have been doing this with my brother for some time now religiously.

"On Friday nights I go to Taekwondo, it's always tough as it's the end of the week but fun."

Despite his continuing successes Benyamin remains humble - and Imran grows more and more proud of him every day.

He said: "It's what Benyamin does every day - it's a passion for him.

"I always said if you do something you're interested in, you'll never work a day in your life.

"I am so glad he took that advice."