NAIROBI (CoinChapter.com) — A dormant Bitcoin whale that had been inactive for over a decade transferred 81 BTC, now worth $5.18 million. The wallet, which had not been touched since 2013, was worth just $44,707 at the time, and has seen a massive price surge that has seen a gain of 11,507%.
Whale Alert reports that the whale has recently moved its holdings. The reason for the move is unclear, but it could be a plan to sell or move the funds to a safer location. This follows signs of activity in other early Bitcoin wallets from the “Satoshi era.”
In 2009, a whale sent 5 BTC to Kraken exchange.
According to Arkham’s on-chain data, another latent whale has been active, sending 5 BTC to the Kraken exchange. This wallet belongs to an early Bitcoin miner who mined the coin in February and March 2009, just a month after Bitcoin launched. This miner’s wallet still holds 1,215 BTC, worth about $77 million. This whale has executed three transactions over the past three weeks, moving a total of 10 BTC to Kraken.
Arkham noted that the whale had been dormant for nearly a decade after moving funds between 2011 and 2014. During that time, the whale’s holdings grew from $474,000 to over $80 million.
Bitcoin Whale Sells 30K BTC Amid Price Surge
In a broader market move, Bitcoin whales sold off over 30,000 BTC, worth about $1.86 billion, in just 96 hours. Data from CryptoQuant shows exchange reserves are decreasing, suggesting whales are moving BTC off exchanges.
In fact, cryptocurrency analyst Ali Martinez attributes the selloff to Bitcoin’s recent surge above $63,000, suggesting whales are cashing out their profits amid the recovery. If Bitcoin follows historical cycles as Martinez predicts, the next market peak could come around October 2025.
Interestingly, Arkham recently discovered a whale that moved $16 million worth of BTC after 15 years of inactivity. Another incident occurred in January 2009, when 250 BTC worth $15.95 million was moved from a Bitcoin mining address during Bitcoin’s first month of existence.
What’s notable is that it’s becoming more common for dormant Bitcoin whales to reactivate, with early adopters moving large amounts of BTC after years of inactivity.