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Billionaire venture capital investor Tim Draper is also a&nbsp;noted Bitcoin (BTC) advocate.
In fact, he was among the first billionaires to buy Bitcoin. He&nbsp;<a href="https://archive.nytimes.com/dealbook.nytimes.com/2014/07/02/venture-capitalist-tim-draper-wins-bitcoin-auction/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">spent</a> $19 million to buy 30,000 BTC when the U.S. Marshals Service auctioned the cryptocurrency seized from Silk Road in 2014.
Draper is&nbsp;also&nbsp;well-known for his investments in popular crypto companies like <a href="https://www.thestreet.com/crypto/markets/coinbase-exec-claps-back-at-gemini-boss-as-crypto-rivalry-heats-up" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Coinbase</a> (Nasdaq: COIN) and <a href="https://www.thestreet.com/crypto/markets/hopes-dashed-as-microstrategy-snubbed-in-s-p-500-rebalance" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Robinhood Markets</a> (Nasdaq: HOOD) and other tech giants like Tesla (Nasdaq: TSLA).
<a href="https://www.thestreet.com/crypto/investing/billionaire-tim-draper-predicts-only-one-asset-will-rule-retail" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Related: Billionaire Tim Draper predicts only one asset will rule retail</a>
His firm Draper Associates has also <a href="https://www.draper.vc/portfolio/rise" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">invested in Rise</a>, a hybrid payroll and compliance platform, which he hailed for hitting the payroll milestone of $1 billion, including in Bitcoin.
Rise not only enables businesses to hire talent, it also helps them pay global teams across more than 190 countries in both fiat currency and cryptocurrency, including&nbsp;stablecoins like Circle's (NYSE: CRCL) USDC and Tether's USDT.
Rise identified the&nbsp;openness of a&nbsp;Web3-native global workforce to receive payments in cryptocurrency and the challenge faced by companies in paying a workforce spread across the globe and bridged the gap with its unique hybrid payroll model.
The innovative payment service helped Rain hit the $500 million milestone earlier this year and the $1 billion milestone nine months later,&nbsp;Draper <a href="https://x.com/timdraper/status/2004598106181304399" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">praised</a> the company on X on Dec. 26.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
 $1,000,000,000 in total payroll across 190+ countries, in Bitcoin and fiat, and hybrids. Rise just crossed this milestone. They hit $500M earlier this year. Nine months later? They've doubled it. That acceleration tells you something about where global work is heading. Most…— Tim Draper (@TimDraper) <a href="https://twitter.com/TimDraper/status/2004598106181304399?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">December 26, 2025</a>
</blockquote>
<h3 id="more-news">More News:</h3>
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 <li><a href="https://www.thestreet.com/crypto/markets/early-tesla-investor-tim-draper-says-not-owning-bitcoin-is-irresponsible" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Early Tesla investor Tim Draper says not owning Bitcoin is ‘irresponsible’</a></li>
 <li><a href="https://www.thestreet.com/crypto/markets/tim-draper-jumped-on-a-billion-dollar-idea-over-bbq-his-advice-eat-more-ribs" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Bilionaire Tim Draper shares blunt words for U.S. government: 'Need to get serious..'</a></li>
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</ul>
Today, work is global and talent is spread across the globe. Yet, the payment systems are&nbsp;still stuck in the past, he said.
<blockquote>
 "Doubling your lifetime volume in 9 months doesn't happen unless you're solving a real pain point."
</blockquote>
Draper pointed to the direction in which global work is heading and how innovative crypto-focused payment companies like Rise, tailored to the demands of a diversified workforce, could capitalize on the transition.
Bitcoin was exchanging hands at $87,606.06 at the time of writing.
<a href="https://www.thestreet.com/crypto/bitcoin/citi-jpmorgan-bridgewater-ark-wall-street-weighs-in-on-bitcoin" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Related: Citi, JPMorgan, Bridgewater, Ark: Wall Street Weighs in on Bitcoin</a>

Early Tesla investor says $1B worth of paychecks now paid in Bitcoin

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