About me

I'm Le Chiffre. I fell into crypto back in 2017. Ex-CoD pro-player turn as a sub-3h marathon runner. Financial engineer by education and a pure technologist. My years have been split between building things and working inside Big Tech – VMware, IBM, Salesforce.

I truly think we are the middle children of history. Born too late to explore earth, born too early to explore space, just in time to explore the age of Nuclear Energy, Infinite Data, AI, Bitcoin and Zero-Knowledge.

Based on this, I've built a Maslow-like pyramid "Le Chiffre's Pyramid."

TD;LR

No energy, no industry.
No data, no strategy.
No AI, no future.
No Bitcoin, no value.
No Zero-Knowledge, no freedom.

[1] Energy

At the base: Energy. Without it, nothing, and I mean nothing, works in a modern economy. It's the sine qua non of prosperity.

There's one simple truth we forget far too often:
All wealth comes from human labor, powered by energy.

You can have the strongest arms in the world, but without electricity, oil or gas, you are in poverty. It's that simple.

Since the Industrial Revolution, the world had access to cheap, reliable and abundant energy. First coal, then oil, then gas, and some country like France - nuclear power.

These are the forces that multiplied human productivity by 100, by 1 000. That's where prosperity came from.

Now that we've set the foundation, let's move to the next layer: data and hardware.

[2] Data

It's very simple: digital sovereignty is now as strategic as energy sovereignty. Data is the oil of the 21sh century. But unlike oil, which comes from the ground, data comes from you. From your behavior. Your transactions. Your movements. Your messages. Your life.

And here's what's both fascinating and terrifying: We produce the wealth. Others exploit it.

We've allowed Google, Amazon, Microsoft, TikTok, Apple, all the tech giants, to capture, store, and dissect our digital lives.
All while living with a sword of Damocles above our heads.
Because the day there's a hack, your entire life is becoming public.
Emails, messages, documents, memories, desires. All on display. For everyone.

And we applaud. Why? Because "it's convenient."
But it's voluntary dependence.

We're not customers anymore, we're data farms. And worse: we're addicts.

These platforms know what you'll do tomorrow, before you've even made the decision yourself.

[3] Artificial Intelligence

You hear about AI every day, as a miracle or as a threat. But here's the one thing no one tells you: AI is not magic. It is a massive statistical machine, powered by obscene amounts of data, and enabled by computing capacity that only a few possess.

AI is not neutral. It is not universal.
It reflects the values of its creators. Their language, their laws, their culture, their geopolitical interests.

Today, AI is still in its early days. It brings us productivity, sometimes even creativity.

[4] Bitcoin

Let me now turn to a word that terrifies central bankers, annoys bloated states and gives hope to those who want to live free: Bitcoin.

Not a trend. Not a bubble. Not a geek's toy.
Bitcoin is an act of rebellion.

A monetary insurrection against a system of theft. For over 50 years now, we’ve lived in a world where money is backed by… nothing.

Since Nixon end the Bretton Woods System in 1971, currencies have become paper, backed only by trust in states that systematically betray that trust.

Central banks create money out of thin air, to save markets, to fund deficits, to buy social peace. And who pays the price? You.

Through inflation. Through the loss of purchasing power. Through the destruction of your savings. I call this the great betrayal of fiat money.

And Bitcoin? It’s the return to something real.
A currency that cannot be faked. That cannot be inflated away. That cannot be manipulated by decree. And yes, it disturbs the status quo.

Because Bitcoin reveals the fundamental lie of our current monetary system. It shows that scarcity, discipline and responsibility are still possible. That we do not need a central banker to protect the value of our money.

So what does the State do?
It regulates. It taxes. It slanders. It instills fear.
And it invents CBDCs, which are nothing more than Orwellian fantasies: programmable euros, traceable and blockable at will. A tool of total control disguised as “progress.”

Against that? Bitcoin is digital cash for free people.
A shield against inflation.
A refuge against monetary tyranny.
A weapon of individual sovereignty in a world of surveillance.

I’m not saying Bitcoin is perfect. It’s volatile. Misunderstood. Not yet a daily currency. But it’s a radical break from the monetary lies of the modern era.

And believe me, in a world of over-indebted states, money printers running non-stop, and confiscatory taxation, holding part of your wealth in a currency they cannot corrupt…

That’s not speculation. That’s insurance. That’s resistance.

Bitcoin isn’t a bet.
It’s a life insurance policy against state madness.
And in the years to come, it may very well be that those who understood this… will be the only ones left standing.

[5] Zero-Knowledge

Now let’s climb to the top of the pyramid.
A discrete, almost invisible tool, yet one that’s absolutely revolutionary for protecting freedom in a world of digital surveillance: Zero-Knowledge.

We live in a world where you are constantly asked to prove who you are, what you own, what you do, to anyone, at any time, without ever knowing what they’ll do with that information.

You want to access a service? They ask for your name, your address, your ID, maybe even your face.
You’re forced to show everything, just to prove one thing.

It’s like being asked to give your date of birth, your address, your tax number, and why not your blood type while you’re at it, just to prove you’re old enough to have a glass of wine.

Zero Knowledge tech simply says: “I can prove what you need to know — and nothing more.”

Over 18? Proven. Without showing your birthdate.
Enough funds? Proven. Without showing your account balance.
A right to access something? Proven. Without stripping naked.

In short: you prove without giving yourself away. And that changes everything.

Remember, freedom is not about showing everything, sharing everything, exposing everything.
Freedom is about choosing what you show, and to whom.

Zero-Knowledge may be the most important cryptographic tool of this century to preserve anonymity, privacy, and sovereignty in the age of total digital control.

And let me be clear: this is not theory. It’s already here.
Used in blockchains, private payments, decentralized identity systems.

And who fears it? States. Banks. Data giants.
Because this tech restores a power they confiscated long ago: the right not to be seen.

They’ll say it’s a technology for criminals. Just like they said about gold. About cash. About the internet.

But in truth? It’s a technology for citizens who refuse to become subjects.

So let me say this clearly: In the world that’s coming, you will either be transparent… or you will be free. And this freedom will rely on cryptographic tools like Zero-Knowledge.

Because the next frontier isn’t just about money or data. It’s about identity itself.

If the way I think resonates with you, you can follow my thoughts on my newsletter and on X: LeChiffreZK