I suppose if you wanted to be really economic about it, you might say that the wealth created is equal to the sums of the wealth foregone in everyone else’s opp

I suppose if you wanted to be really economic about it, you might say that the wealth created is equal to the sums of the wealth foregone in everyone else’s opportunity costs. But, really, that is stilly. Nobody does that kind of accounting. I think what the OP meant was that when the whole fiction comes crashing down (editorializing here) that the people who get rich will be those that get out first. Those who can’t get out will be owed because there simply doesn’t seem to be enough real dollars backing up the exchanges. For real wealth to be gained you want liquidity and you want to have healthy demand for the underlying product. What people want here is not actual bitcoins (or other cryptos). They want appreciation in value. However, while the prices are inflating a lot, it seems that enough people are trying exit positions to USD that the exchanges are having trouble getting enough cash to facilitate transactions. If that all ends, the fixed sum of dollars in the exchanges will be the zero sum. Those that get out first will get it, and those that don’t will be SOL.