Quick Take:

• A bitcoin wallet inactive for over 10 years transferred its entire stack of 687.33 BTC early morning.
• Initial reception of bitcoins dated back to Jan. 12, 2014, when each bitcoin was valued at $917.
• Purpose behind the transfer and owner’s identity remain undisclosed.
• Recent instances of dormant addresses waking up coincide with significant events in the crypto space.
• Notable movements include a $6 billion transfer in March from a long-dormant address and a consolidation of $140 million in mined bitcoins.

A significant event unfolded in the world of cryptocurrency today as a long-dormant bitcoin wallet, untouched for over a decade, initiated a transfer of its entire holding. The wallet, holding 687.33 BTC, equivalent to over $44 million at current market prices, saw its last transaction on Jan. 12, 2014, when the value of each bitcoin stood at $917, according to on-chain monitoring platform Lookonchain.

The sudden movement of such a substantial amount of bitcoins has raised questions within the crypto community. The purpose behind this transfer remains a mystery, as does the identity of the wallet’s owner.

This event follows a pattern of dormant addresses awakening coinciding with significant developments in the cryptocurrency space. In March, an address inactive since 2019 executed a $6 billion transfer, making it one of the largest movements in bitcoin’s history. Additionally, another entity consolidated $140 million worth of bitcoins mined in 2010 into a single wallet around the same time.

The timing of these movements is notable. In January, nearly 50,000 dormant bitcoins became active shortly after the approval of spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds in the United States. This suggests a correlation between regulatory developments and increased activity among long-dormant addresses.

However, not all movements occur within the Bitcoin blockchain. In a separate incident on the Ethereum blockchain, approximately $71 million worth of wrapped bitcoins were lost due to an address poisoning attack, highlighting the vulnerability of cross-chain transactions.

As of now, the price of bitcoin stands at $64,269, according to The Block’s Bitcoin Price Page, reflecting the ongoing volatility and intrigue within the cryptocurrency market.