Bitcoin Wallet Comes Alive After a Decade of Inactivity
A Bitcoin wallet that had been dormant for over 10 years recently became active again, sparking speculation within the cryptocurrency community. On May 6, the wallet transferred 687.33 BTC to undisclosed addresses, leading to rumors of a selloff.
Whale Alert, a blockchain tracker and analytics platform, reported that the Bitcoin whale moved $43.893 million worth of BTC to two addresses. One transfer involved 625.42 BTC, valued at $41 million, while the other transfer involved 61.9 BTC, equivalent to approximately $2.89 million.
The wallet had been inactive since January 12, 2014, when it initially received the Bitcoin. At that time, the cryptocurrency was trading at $917 per coin, and the value of the whale’s reserve was $630,000. Currently, BTC is worth $63.8K, reflecting a staggering profit of 6,875%.
The reactivated wallet can be traced back to the early days of Bitcoin, known as the Satoshi era. During this time, the pseudonymous founder, Nakamoto, was active in online forums. Some speculate that wallets from this era are linked to Satoshi himself.
This is not the first time dormant Bitcoin wallets have been reactivated after many years. In November 2023, Satoshi-era Bitcoin whales transferred $230 million worth of BTC after six years of inactivity. In August 2023, a wallet containing 1,005 BTC mined in 2010 was reactivated and transferred to new addresses. The value of the coins at the time of receipt was just $328.
Another dormant wallet became active in April 2024, after almost 14 years of inactivity. The Bitcoin whale behind this wallet moved 50 BTC to Coinbase, resulting in a profit of over $3 million on coins that were once worth less than a penny each.
The sudden activation of the dormant wallet has raised concerns about a potential selloff. Some believe that early miners or buyers are looking to profit from their holdings, while others are cautious about the impact of such a large transaction on the market.
According to Fortune, approximately 1.75 million Bitcoin wallets have been inactive for over a decade, collectively holding 1,798,681 BTC valued at about $121 billion. This can be attributed to Bitcoin’s early price history, where the cryptocurrency was worth very little. Many individuals may have forgotten about or lost access to their wallets due to the lack of key security measures in place before 2012.
While some dormant wallets may continue to reactivate slowly, it is estimated that around 1.5 million coins are permanently lost.