Dormant 2011 Bitcoin Miner Moves $8.6 Billion in BTC After 14 Years

A cluster of long-dormant bitcoin wallets dating to 2011 shifted about 80,000 BTC—worth roughly $8.6 billion at Friday’s prices—in a series of transactions on 4 July, blockchain data show. Eight addresses, each holding 10,000 BTC, were emptied within hours and the coins were routed to newly created wallets in identical 10,000-BTC tranches.

On-chain analysts at Arkham and Lookonchain said the coins appear to belong to an early miner. Coinbase director Conor Grogan noted that the addresses consolidate rewards from about 180 blocks mined in 2011 and once held as many as 200,000 BTC, currently valued near $22 billion. The activity elevates the owner to the 14th-largest known bitcoin holder.

None of the transactions were sent to exchange deposit addresses, suggesting the holder may be reorganizing custody rather than preparing an immediate sale. The transfer represents more than 0.4% of bitcoin’s circulating supply and is one of the largest ever movements by a so-called “ancient” wallet.

The bitcoin activity coincided with separate large-scale Ethereum withdrawals. Abraxas Capital and another unidentified wallet removed a combined 89,557 ETH—about $230 million—from Binance, OKX and Kraken over the past 24 hours, according to exchange-tracking services. While the motives remain unclear, the concurrent moves have heightened market attention on whale behavior across major cryptocurrencies.