A Bitcoin wallet containing 1,005 BTC created in 2010 has come back to life as an anonymous user moved the dormant assets to new addresses through a series of different transactions. Kirill Kretov, a blockchain developer and cryptocurrency investor, focused on the movement of BTC mined just a year after Bitcoin’s inception.
A $29 Million Worth Movement
Kretov first independently verified the details of the wallet using data from the blockchain analysis platform Blockchair. According to the wallet information, when 1,005 BTC was acquired in 2010, it was worth only $328. At the time of writing, this asset has a value of over $29 million.
The cryptocurrency community also took note of the awakening of BTC, and some investors questioned whether Bitcoin’s creator, Satoshi Nakamoto, was moving the assets:
Kretov stated in an interview that it is unlikely for the creator of Bitcoin to quietly move the untouched BTC, suggesting the involvement of a long-term holder or an entity associated with previous dormant Bitcoin awakenings. He also added that the entity could be selling the Bitcoin:
“I can expect the price to be higher than the current market because these are 100% clean Bitcoins. Not to mention how old they are, which makes them particularly appealing to Bitcoin enthusiasts.”
Only Three Wallets with Over 1000 Bitcoins Have Awakened
Kretov believes that the same user who moved the Bitcoin from the wallets containing 50 BTC in 13 different instances between 2020 and 2021 could control the wallet. He also noted that research archives following numerous dormant Bitcoin wallets in the years immediately after Bitcoin’s inception marked only three different awakenings with 1000 or more Bitcoins.
One of these instances is the movement of 100 Bitcoins from two wallets mined in 2011, which occurred in December 2021. In April 2023, 1000 BTC mined in 2011 was moved from a single wallet, and in July 2023, another 1037 BTC was moved from a wallet dating back to 2012.
“The BTCs and their funding sources from 2011 and 2012 are different – they are not newly minted assets. Therefore, the current awakening is much closer to these 13 instances.”
Recently, another dormant BTC wallet holding more than 1,037 Bitcoins was transferred to a new address. While the BTC was acquired in April 2012 with an estimated value of $1100, its total value was around $31 million when it was moved in 2023.
