Satoshi Resurfaced? Decade-Long Dormant Wallets Spring To Life, Unleashing Over $60 Million In BTC

In a notable development, two dormant Bitcoin wallets, untouched for over a decade, have suddenly come to life, transferring a staggering $60 million in Bitcoin (BTC).

The revelation came to light through a tweet by Lookonchain, a service that tracks significant crypto transactions. The tweet announced the movement of 1,000 BTC from these long-dormant wallets in just 20 minutes.

Notably, the wallets, identified as “16vRqA” and “1DUJuH,” received 500 BTC on September 13, 2013, when Bitcoin’s price hovered around a mere $124. Going by this price, each Whale’s Bitcoin reserve was worth $62,000. Mirroring it with today’s BTC price at $61,107, each whale’s BTC worth is approximately $30.6 million, reflecting a 49,179.8% Return on Investment (ROI).

This latest development comes after another dormant Bitcoin wallet, inactive for a decade, came to life on May 6 and moved 687.33 BTC, valued at around $44 million.

Notably, the movement of such vast sums of Bitcoin raises questions about the intentions of the wallet holders. Speculation abounds regarding whether these wallets belong to Bitcoin Creator, Satoshi Nakamoto or early Bitcoin miners who had forgotten about their holdings or individuals with an unparalleled commitment to the “HODL” strategy.

Notably, the timing of these events coincides with Bitcoin’s current volatility. Analysts are divided on the direction of its price amid conflicting indicators. While some foresee a potential surge to $70,000 or beyond in the coming months, on-chain data suggests that long-term holders may be offloading their holdings.

JA Martunn, a leading analyst at Cryptoquant, recently highlighted this phenomenon, noting that the “Coin Days Destroyed” metric indicates a likely peak in Bitcoin’s price. Notably, this metric considers the age and volume of Bitcoin transactions, suggesting that seasoned market participants are divesting their holdings.

Martunn, however expressed optimism, suggesting that newer market participants may ultimately catalyze a fresh bull run by relinquishing their holdings to experienced market players. 

“Eventually, there reaches a point where the influx of new investors cannot sustain the demand for older coins at prevailing prices, leading to a decline. This prompts newer investors to sell at a minor loss, triggering further sell-offs. Ultimately, the cycle concludes with capitulation, as newer participants relinquish their holdings to experienced market participants” he added.

That said, it is important to note that the average purchase price for new whales is $61,200. According to Cryptoquant analyst Axel Adler, they may experience stress if the price drops below this threshold.

“Currently, this level is acting as support. Based on history, new whales almost always have to experience stress. The simplest way to get rid of it is to HODL,” he wrote.