TRON Founder Justin Sun Graces the Cover of Forbes Magazine, Becoming the Fourth Person in the Crypto Field

On July 30, 1863, the "Automobile King" Henry Ford was born. 127 years later, on July 30, 1990, Justin Sun was born in Xining, Qinghai Province.

Author: Jordan, PANews

On July 30, 1863, the "Automobile King" Henry Ford was born. 127 years later, on July 30, 1990, Justin Sun was born in Xining, Qinghai Province. Just as Ford promoted the popularization of the automobile industry, Justin Sun has also made remarkable achievements in promoting the global adoption of cryptocurrency and Web3.

On March 28, 2025, Justin Sun, the 35-year-old founder of TRON, appeared on the cover of Forbes magazine, becoming the fourth person in the crypto field after CZ, SBF and Brian Armstrong. This event is undoubtedly a recognition of his contribution and global influence in the blockchain field, and has also attracted the collective attention of the crypto industry and traditional business.

The symbolic meaning from "controversy" to "authoritative certification"

Since entering the public eye, Justin Sun has been plagued by controversy.

From winning the first prize in the New Concept Essay Competition to successfully enrolling in the History Department of Peking University, Sun Yuchen had a smooth journey in his youth. In 2011, Sun Yuchen, who entered the University of Pennsylvania, Trump's alma mater, to pursue a master's degree, encountered something that influenced his life: Bitcoin. In the same year, he and Jiang Fangzhuo, who was studying at Tsinghua University, appeared on the cover of Asia Weekly.

Sun Yuchen, who made his first fortune through Bitcoin, returned to China to start his own business in 2015. Coinciding with the rise of the domestic blockchain industry at that time, Sun Yuchen devoted himself to it and was naturally favored by the "Post-90s Fund" under IDG. That year, Sun Yuchen also received a great gift in his life: he became the first student of the "Lakeside University" founded by Alibaba founder Jack Ma, and was the only "post-90s" among them. His selection was not unrelated to the strong recommendation of IDG founder Xiong Xiaoge. This investment circle tycoon once wrote a letter of recommendation for Sun Yuchen personally, which also gave Sun Yuchen an additional title - "Jack Ma's disciple."

It was also in 2015 that Jack Ma appeared on the cover of Forbes. As Justin Sun said on social media: "Ten years later, the world has changed, but the only thing that remains unchanged is inheritance, perseverance and construction. Ten years have passed, and everything has just begun."

What really made Sun Yuchen famous was the sensational "Buffett lunch incident" in 2019. At 3:48 am on June 4, 2019, Sun Yuchen announced on major social platforms that he had successfully bid for Buffett's 20th anniversary charity lunch at a record-breaking price of $4.568 million (about RMB 31.54 million). However, on July 23, 2019, Sun Yuchen suddenly announced that he had to cancel the lunch with Buffett due to sudden kidney stones. Finally, on January 23, 2020, Sun Yuchen posted a photo on Twitter, showing that he had dinner with Buffett at a private country club in Omaha, USA. The dinner lasted more than 3 hours, and they exchanged topics such as Bitcoin and Tesla.

Frankly speaking, Sun Yuchen's early behaviors did cause a lot of controversy. The crypto community believed that he created a personal image of a "post-90s entrepreneurial pioneer" for himself and used media publicity and business success cases to quickly increase his personal popularity. During this period, Sun Yuchen was more regarded as a hype master, and the cryptocurrency industry had mixed views on him. Some people recognized his marketing capabilities, but many people felt that he frequently used high-profile remarks and even "ridiculed the popularity."

However, as the crypto market becomes more mature, the industry's perspective and attitude towards Justin Sun has quietly changed.

At the end of 2024, Justin Sun spent US$6.24 million (about RMB 45 million) to bid for the "most expensive banana" at Sotheby's auction house and paid with cryptocurrency. At the subsequent press conference, he also ate the banana on the spot. His behavior has become part of art, reflecting the charm of art - challenging traditional cognition to cause people to think deeply.

If it can be said that Justin Sun's "wealth" mainly relies on the celebrity effect and the bull market cycle of the crypto market, but as the industry begins to enter its mature stage, the crypto community has gradually understood and recognized the once unacceptable views or behaviors. This time, appearing on the cover of Forbes magazine is not only a recognition from the international mainstream media