In brief
- Two Bitcoin addresses holding 50 BTC each moved their coins on Friday after more than 16 years of inactivity.
- The Bitcoin was worth about $6 in 2010 and approximately $6.89 million when transferred, representing roughly 114.75 million percent appreciation.
- A subsequent transaction combined coins from both wallets, suggesting coordinated control, but their owner's identity and intentions remain unknown.
Two Bitcoin addresses that had been dormant since 2010 suddenly moved $6.9 million worth of BTC on Friday, bringing two early mining rewards back into circulation after more than 16 years.
Blockchain tracking service Whale Alert flagged the first transfer at 4:08 a.m. UTC on November 13, when 50 BTC worth approximately $3.44 million moved from an address that had not spent its original mining reward since September 2010.
Just over two minutes later, another 50 BTC moved from a separate wallet with an equally long history.
Both transfers involved Bitcoin originally generated through mining, rather than coins purchased on an exchange. Their combined value today was approximately $6,885,068.
The coins came from two blocks mined on September 8 and September 19, 2010, respectively. Back then, Bitcoin traded for roughly six cents, meaning each 50 BTC reward was worth about three bucks.
At Friday's transaction prices of around $68,800 per Bitcoin, their combined value had increased approximately 1,147,511 times, equivalent to a 114,751,033% increase.
That percentage measures the appreciation in Bitcoin's market price (what’s known as unrealized gains), not money the holder has actually made by selling (which would be known as realized gains). In fact, it’s unknown whether this was a peer-to-peer transaction, an OTC sell, or simply a wallet switch for security reasons.
The $3 valuation is also an estimate. Bitcoin barely had a functioning market in September 2010, with historical prices showing a trading range of around five to seven cents. The Mt. Gox exchange had only opened that July, with its first recorded trade taking place at $0.04951 per coin.
The transfers are part of a broader trend of ancient Bitcoin wallets waking up in 2026. According to Galaxy Research data highlighted in August, Bitcoin that had remained untouched for at least a decade was moving at a pace rarely seen in previous years. In one 10-day stretch alone, six wallets dating back to 2011, 2012, and 2014 transferred a combined 553.59 BTC, worth more than $40 million at the time.
Some of those movements have been linked to security concerns, wallet upgrades, or transfers to professional custodians rather than outright selling. Friday's activity adds another 100 BTC to the growing list of early Bitcoin holdings changing hands—or at least changing addresses—after more than a decade of silence.
The blockchain provides a detailed record of where the money moved, but it doesn't reveal who controls the receiving wallets.
The first transaction split the 50 BTC into two new addresses, sending nearly 49.99 BTC to one and approximately 0.01 BTC to another, minus a tiny network fee.
The second transaction followed a similar pattern, transferring nearly 49 BTC to one address and approximately 1 BTC to another.
Both transactions cost just 1,110 satoshis each in network fees, equivalent to approximately $0.75. A satoshi is Bitcoin's smallest unit, worth one hundred-millionth of a BTC.
As of an on-chain check at approximately 14:00 UTC Friday, the 100 BTC had not moved again from their new destinations following the consolidation, and no sale has been identified.
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