The story about the purchase of Papa John’s pizzas using Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) is legendary, but did you know that someone also once paid for a Big Mac with the world’s largest cryptocurrency
Big Mac For 3.5 BTC?
Kane Ellis, an Australian entrepreneur, was one of the early believers in Bitcoin and started mining the cryptocurrency in 2010.
In a January podcast, he revealed that he was mining three BTC a day at one point. The interesting part — he used the mined BTC to pay for his daily expenses.
“I think it was roughly about three and a half Bitcoin, which is what I was mining in a day sometimes,” Ellis said. “It was a delicious meal. No one can deny that Big Mac’s not a good meal.”
Ellis narrated that he was “religiously” using a card that converted cryptocurrency to everyday, fiat currencies, unaware that he was letting go of a significant fortune.
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A Fortune Lost?
Although Ellis didn't mention the year of the transaction during the podcast, a 2018 report by Australian outlet Nine News quoted him as saying it took place in 2011.
The average price of one Bitcoin in January 2011 was $0.50, rising to $16 in June and finishing at $4.70 in December. For the sake of convenience, if we aggregate and average the monthly closes for the year, the average BTC price is roughly $5.27. This means Ellis paid $18.445 for a Big Mac burger
Fast forward to September 2025, and one BTC costs $109,583.42. So 3.5 BTC would cost $383,541 today, marking an eye-popping gain of 2079280%
| Cryptocurrency | Average Price in 2011 | Price (Recorded at 1:20 a.m. ET) | Gains +/- |
| Bitcoin | $5.27 | $109,583.42 | +2079280% |
The Tale Of Burgers And Pizzas
When asked if the burger was worth it, Ellis replied, “I think so,” drawing parallels with the “Bitcoin Pizza” person, Laszlo Hanyecz.
“That guy for 10,000 Bitcoin, he got like three or four pizzas for his family, and he says the exact same thing. It was definitely worth it,” he stated.
What are you wondering? Did you also splurge those Satoshis instead of holding out for a jackpot? We extend our sympathies.
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Photo Courtesy: 24K-Production on Shutterstock.com
