Bitcoin Peer Stories: #05, Escaping the Financial Jungle

Publication: Şelale Malkoçoğlu | Date: 11/25/2025

The following content was published on behalf of Bitvocation—a unique space dedicated to helping Bitcoiners break free from fiat jobs with resources and guidance—as part of the monthly series "Bitcoin Peer Stories."

I used to be a stickler for rules. It’s not that I break the law but I now see the world differently. Growing up, life was always about getting things right and hoping the system rewards you by leveling you up; anyway, isn’t that how all games are played? But the good thing about reality, it has its own funny way of making you the joke.

Ignorant First Steps

Growing up in Kenya, I’d hear my father complain about a Ksh. 5 price hike in fuel announced on the news and wonder why he was so mad about something I then considered “small”. My mother’s cries when the tomatoes increased in price was something I saw as petty; after all, it’s just Ksh. 5. Looking back now, I was the silly one, I was just peeping through a keyhole and assuming I had a map of the whole house.

The truth is, I come from a place where corruption has become a cultured trend; where it has been normalized.

Value reciprocation via currency is broken. The laws are fixed to favor those in office and condemn the ordinary man into subconscious slavery. We work not to improve our lives but rather to make others richer. The carrot is usually further than it seems and we never reach it no matter how fast we run. Most die chasing.

It’s a messy financial jungle where herbivores turn to carnivores and carnivores occasionally turn herbivorous; a literal man-eat man society. In my quest for survival, I met this friend of mine, whom I thank to date. He mentioned Bitcoin when we met, but never really seemed to have a good grasp of what it was. All that was needed was for him to mention it to me twice, and I was dangling at the entrance of the rabbithole ready to dive in.

The Bitcoin Revelation

Bitcoin has opened my eyes in a way I never thought possible. I have learnt how rotten the financial system is and that it is one of those fights that is not to be fought head on; the only way to win is out. I found myself studying economic models deep into the night, all in awe of how we have managed to stay blind for this long. I guess that’s the joke, it’s always in our faces but we somehow cannot see it.

Aside from being an eye opener, bitcoin has shown me that all the rottenness can be healed, that there’s light at the end of this deep, dark tunnel. It has proved to me that ultimately despite all the bad in the world, maybe not all of us are rotten. This led me to be enthusiastic about finding others who were fighting the same battle. After all, what good is a war fought alone, and not beside those with whom you share a similar vision?

Search for Community

My journey to finding others who shared the same passion has led me to discover a lot of amazing products and services in the space that are literally life changing. From healthcare, finance, travel, investment, security; the list is endless. I however also had to bring something to the table as a fellow warrior. This became my next challenge. And I’m really thankful that I took the leap to face it head on.

The first problem I discovered is that there is so much cool stuff going on in the Bitcoin ecosystem and that it is hard to keep up with all of it. The second problem proved to be one of misinformation. Wherever a store of value is involved, manipulation is bound to happen and this becomes the breeding ground for misinformation. I had to kill two birds with one stone.

That is when I met the Lightning News crew via a Telegram group. At first, we got to know each other and coincidentally found out we all contributed to bitcoin by accepting it as the only payment method for our various freelance gigs. This birthed the idea of us combining our unique skillset in a way that will do more for Bitcoin than just stacking.

The Lightning News Community

The Lightning News team is one whose mission has always been to be a magnifying glass to the people. To help provide a sense of focus within the Bitcoin space while staying true to bitcoin’s original ethos. I had finally found my space, one where work is not just work but a chance to change the world, a chance to leave it better than we found it. And that for me is more than enough fulfilment.

My role at Lightning News involves helping keep the machine running. Coordinating day to day activities such as publishing, interview outreach and client relations. I enjoy it because at the end of the day, it puts a smile on my face knowing I’ve done something to connect the bitcoin world and make those that were uninformed or misinformed know the truth .

Bitcoin to me has not just changed my world view; it has given me hope, a fighting chance to make it right.

That is all I have ever needed. I now understand that life was never meant to be fair, but as long as bitcoiners like you and I have a fighting chance to help make things right, the fire will keep burning and the time will finally come when we get to taste the carrot we are always chasing.

About Lightning News

Our mission is to raise awareness, provide insights and help educate on all things Lighting Network, Bitcoin scaling and decentralized payments.

We cover the latest news, trends and developments helping our readers to stay informed with reports, research and opinions.

As a fully independent platform we seek to inform consumers, operators and policy makers, bridging knowledge gaps between these groups.

We believe in the power of peer-to-peer payment protocols and advocate for consumer choice and inclusive, non-permissive financial innovation.

Our team consists of devoted bitcoiners who collaborate remotely from different countries around the world.

Find out more: lightning.news

About Kirubai

I’m a believer in Bitcoin who enjoys nature walks and sports. With half a decade experience in business development and marketing, I enjoy bringing cool, and helpful products into the limelight and seeing a smile on humanity’s face. My purpose is to spread the good news about how Bitcoin is changing lives rather than dwell on the negativity.

• Let's connect on X: Raumdeuter

Enjoyed this story? Discover more: Tanja Baechle "Pursing The Pathless Path", Philip Charter "From English Teacher to ‘Totally Human Writer", Felix Billert "Building Europe’s First Zero-Euro Bitcoin Lifestyle", Şelale Malkoçoğlu "Purpose Beyond Paychecks".

Want to share your own? Contact Bitvocation. They will always give priority to their POW Lab members, but there might be room for others too.