After sitting untouched for over a decade, two early Bitcoin wallets suddenly sprang to life late Thursday night, transferring a combined 20,000 BTC, worth roughly $2.18 billion at today’s prices.
On-chain watchers quickly flagged the activity, which involved funds that have been dormant since April 2011.
The wallets had received the Bitcoin back when BTC was trading for mere cents, making this move one of the largest awakenings of long-inactive funds on record.
A look back: the 2011 transaction trail
The story begins on April 3, 2011, when a Bitcoin address ending in gDwcK sent out 23,377.83 BTC in one go. The coins were distributed to three different wallets: two received exactly 10,000 BTC each, and the remaining 3,377.83 BTC was sent to a third.
According to blockchain data, that third wallet spent or moved its funds shortly after the transaction.
But the two addresses that received 10,000 BTC each, ending in xj2me and AWJYm, went completely silent for the next 14 years.
Until now.
On Thursday night and early Friday morning, both wallets transferred their respective holdings to new addresses, just 30 minutes apart.
The receiving wallets haven’t moved the BTC since.
These were also their first-ever transactions, suggesting they were created solely to receive the funds. There’s still no known identity behind the transfers, and it’s unclear whether the same entity controls both wallets.
Why it matters, and what’s next
Movements from ancient wallets tend to stir the crypto community, especially when such large amounts are involved. Not only do they highlight how early Bitcoin adopters are sitting on vast fortunes, but they also raise questions around potential sales.
While this doesn’t necessarily mean 20,000 BTC is heading to an exchange, it certainly catches the attention of traders, analysts, and chain sleuths alike.
At the time of the original transaction, the total value of those 20,000 BTC was just $7,800. Today, that stash has appreciated by nearly 14 million percent, underlining just how far Bitcoin has come, and how much early users may still be holding.
Whether these coins are being moved for safekeeping or something else entirely is anyone’s guess. For now, the wallets have gone quiet again.
