Michael Ballweg on lockdowns, COVID, and Bitcoin
Today, he lives in El Salvador.
His bank accounts were frozen.
His companies were shut down.
He spent months in prison.
Many people know his story.
But very few understand what it actually means.
I had the chance to sit down with him for an interview:
About Germany.
About the COVID years.
About what the next few years might bring.
About energy.
About Europe.
About freedom.
But above all, we talked about one thing:
change.
Since COVID at the latest, many people have realized
that things they once took for granted
are no longer guaranteed.
Accounts can be frozen.
Businesses can be shut down.
Opinions can get you into trouble.
Freedom can be restricted.
And yet, most people are still living exactly as they did before.
They’ve seen everything.
They’ve heard everything.
They understand what’s going on.
But nothing has changed.
The biggest misconception in life is this:
believing that awareness alone is enough.
You can understand how systems work.
You can understand how money works.
You can understand how politics works.
But if you don’t change anything,
nothing will change.
People today are more informed than ever—
and at the same time, more dependent than ever.
They know everything.
But they change nothing.
It’s not enough to be aware.
You have to act on that awareness.
Many people are waiting.
Many people are hoping.
Many believe they still have time.
But the biggest turning points in life don’t come
when you know more—
they come
when you make a decision.
Michael made a decision.
He left Germany.
Started over.
El Salvador.
And he says what surprised him most
wasn’t just the freedom—
it was the energy of the country.
That sense of momentum.
That feeling that something is being built, not falling apart.
Maybe that’s the real difference between countries:
In some places, decline is being managed.
In others, the future is being built.
This conversation reminded me of something
many people know—
but only a few truly understand:
You don’t have to change the world.
You just have to change your decisions.
Today, “home” isn’t necessarily
where you were born.
Home is where you have options.
Where you can choose freely.
Where you are not dependent.
And maybe the most important insight of all
is not political,
not economic—
but personal:
It’s not enough to see things clearly.
You also need the courage to act on what you see.
Source: X @bitcoin_Hotel, 29.03.2026