The US military is addicted to stock trading and cryptocurrency trading, even recommending stocks on the aircraft carrier deck.

U.S. active-duty military members have made a fortune from tech stocks and bitcoin, and even exchanged investment advice on unpopular cryptocurrencies on the decks of aircraft carriers. This article is derived from an article written by the Wall Street Journal and compiled, compiled and contributed by Odaily Planet. (Synopsis: Taiwan's young police officer “speculated and lost money” borrowed money to invest in bitcoin, and the defendant was searched and interviewed for fraud) (Background supplement: South Koreans have rolled up coin speculation into e-sports) On Wednesday night on the mission, U.S. Space Force Captain Gordon McCulloh was sitting on a military propeller plane hanging in the calm and dim night sky of New Mexico, and the group chat of his squadron suddenly exploded. Squadron members — some on the ground, some in the air — collect data related to electromagnetic warfare while keeping their investments in mind. Google's stock just surged in after-hours trading. McCulloh saw the message after landing: a ground officer sent a screenshot of the news; Another replied, “To the moon.” The day was becoming incredibly lucrative for McCulloh and his brothers. The U.S. military is perhaps the world's most lethal “investment club,” and they're making a lot of money in the current bull market. Active-duty military personnel are making a fortune from tech stocks and bitcoin, exchanging investment advice in unpopular cryptocurrencies on the deck of aircraft carriers. As the market continues to reach new highs, more and more new Porsche and Hummer are appearing in the base parking lot. Social media influencers in military uniforms tell fans that they too can become rich. McCulloh, a flight test engineer, invests heavily in companies related to nuclear energy. He bets that the AI data center boom will further drive up power demand. So far, everything is going well. Some of his shares have doubled or more since the spring, though the 27-year-old officer is also wondering how long the rally can continue. “I have to admit, I don't understand why the market can continue to rise without hindrance.” He said. Despite some recent volatility in the market, overall stock prices have soared since April, pushing up the soldiers' net worth. Luke Air Force Base (Luke Air Force Base), located in Phoenix, was one of the regions with the highest percentage of cryptocurrency filings on the nation's tax returns in 2021. The military drove the surge in cryptocurrency prices that began in the fall of 2020 and peaked in 2021. According to a Wall Street Journal analysis of IRS (IRS) data, in 2020, 8 of the 25 zip codes with the highest percentage of crypto income or disposal declarations in the United States were located around military bases. Bitcoin's price roughly quadrupled that year. By 2021, that percentage had risen to 11 out of 25. IRS data shows that near Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico, 16.3% of personal income tax returns in 2021 showed records of receipt, sale, exchange, or disposal of cryptocurrencies; The percentage is even higher near Luke Air Force Base (19.4% ) in Arizona and Vandenberg Space Force Base (18.1% in California ). By comparison, only 4.1 percent of U.S. tax returns tick the same item. Military bases lost that dominance in 2022 – the latest annual data provided by the IRS. Cryptocurrency prices plummeted that year, and the number of people inside and outside the base reporting cryptocurrency transactions plummeted. But that year's cryptocurrency frenzy — and the Meme stock boom of the same period — left an entire generation of military personnel addicted to investing. While many members of the military are long-term investors, mainly index funds, some engage in short-term speculation or bet large amounts of their assets on a very small number of stocks or cryptocurrencies. They tend to be young, have only experienced market upswings, and have few means of hedging against risk. “If there is a big correction in the market, they will definitely be miserable.” Brian O'Neill, a financial consultant and Air Force veteran, said. Some have already experienced such pain, suffering considerable losses in a bad bet, but the military are more inclined to talk about their victories than defeats. “There's a bragging culture here,” says O'Neill, who recently bought a Hummer with extra income, both to treat himself and to support his side hustle as a KOL. The Coast Guard member records investment and financial advice in and around his home studio in St. Petersburg, Florida. Saunders made a profit on Tesla stock, but said he lost more than $10,000 a day last winter trading a financial product that leveraged bets on MicroStrategy ( the company's purchase of bitcoin, now called Strategy). He now mostly turns to stock market index funds. He also earns an extra five figures a month for being an influencer on TikTok and Instagram. His specialty: films that provide financial advice to military personnel. Operational hotspots Military bases are fertile ground for an investment frenzy. It's full of young people — many are inherently risk-taking — who have plenty of time, plenty of disposable income, and few taboos when it comes to discussing personal finance, because military salaries are transparent and determined by rank. While the military offers a guaranteed pension after 20 years and unparalleled job stability, they don't offer great salaries or six-figure year-end bonuses. The military community has long been active in the field of investment. Some take advantage of a zero-down payment loan from the Department of Veterans Affairs to purchase rental property. During the years of high inflation in the early 1980s, soldiers who had been locked up in nuclear missile submarines for months passed their time by discussing gold bars and rough diamonds. In the late 1990s, technology stocks became a popular target. But over the past two decades, two intertwined waves have greatly fueled the culture of enrichment in the barracks: websites that lowered the barrier to trading and later the rise of apps like Robinhood; The second is the continuation of the war on terror. Since the beginning of the 21st century, hundreds of thousands of troops have been stationed in remote bases in Iraq and Afghanistan. They receive hazard duty pay, family separation allowance and are exempt from federal income tax. Suddenly, they had thousands of dollars in extra income and started looking for investment channels. F-16 fighter pilot Shawn Walsh first opened a securities account in 2008, when he was stationed in Iraq. His main mission was to bomb the rebels, but between sorties, he often wore full flight gear and stood by for hours in a small shed just a short distance from the fighter planes. There, with nothing to do, he and the other pilots would talk about various investment strategies. Several military bases, including Vandenberg Space Force Base on California's central coast, fueled the cryptocurrency frenzy in 2020-2021. Air Force transport pilot Spencer Reese transports soldiers back and forth between Kyrgyzstan and Afghanistan in 2013. “Every assignment is a crash course on different investment strategies,” he said. Someone sued…