Two Bitcoin addresses holding 50 BTC each activate after 16.2 years dormant
In brief
- Two Bitcoin addresses holding 50 BTC each became active on Nov. 13, Whale Alert reported.
- Both addresses had been dormant for 16.2 years; their combined value is about $6.89 million.
- Each 50 BTC balance matches the block reward from Bitcoin's early mining days.
- Ownership of both wallets is unconfirmed; nothing links them to Satoshi Nakamoto.
- Several older addresses holding hundreds of BTC also became active in October.
What Whale Alert flagged
The first address dates from 2010, and it had been inactive for 16.2 years before its Nov. 13 activity. In Bitcoin's early days, its 50 BTC were worth just $3.
That's $3 for coins now valued at more than $3.4 million.
Minutes later, a second dormant address holding 50 BTC (roughly $3,442,129) also became active after 16.2 years, Whale Alert said. U.Today put the combined value of the coins at around $6.89 million.
Why 50 BTC matters
The number isn't random. Bitcoin launched in January 2009 with a block reward of 50 BTC, and that reward stayed in place until the first halving in November 2012. Each address holds exactly what a miner could earn in those early days. "Satoshi era" usually means Bitcoin's first few years (mainly 2009 and 2010), when the network's pseudonymous founder, Satoshi Nakamoto, was active in developing it.
The label doesn't mean these wallets belong to Nakamoto. There's no confirmation of who owned them, and nobody has confirmed whether the same person or entity controls both. Old addresses like these get a lot of attention because Bitcoin had relatively few miners and users back then.
Other old coins moved in October
Nov. 13 wasn't the first such activation this autumn. On Oct. 17, Whale Alert tracked activity from old addresses holding 248 BTC and 167 BTC, worth about $20.24 million and $13.65 million. On Oct. 20, U.Today reported, an address holding 500 BTC (about $41.54 million) became active after 10.7 years; in 2016, those coins were worth $194,955.
Crypto analytics platform Arkham later linked that 500 BTC transaction to addresses belonging to Clifton Collins, a convicted Irish drug dealer whose crypto holdings had previously been considered inaccessible. Two days later, on Oct. 22, Whale Alert reported that an address holding 170 BTC, worth about $14.38 million, had become active after 13 years of dormancy.
Frequently asked questions
What does Satoshi era mean for a Bitcoin address?
Satoshi era refers to Bitcoin's first few years, mainly 2009 and 2010. During that period, Bitcoin's pseudonymous founder Satoshi Nakamoto was active in developing the network. The label describes when an address dates from, not who owns it.
Who owns the two Bitcoin addresses that activated on Nov. 13?
Nobody has confirmed who owned the wallets. It also hasn't been confirmed whether the same person or entity owns both addresses. The fact that they date from Bitcoin's early years doesn't mean they belong to Satoshi Nakamoto.
Why did each address hold exactly 50 BTC?
Bitcoin launched in January 2009 with a 50 BTC block reward, which stayed in place until the first halving in November 2012. The 50 BTC in each address matches the block reward miners could earn in those early days.
