Opening Vintage Caches — $28 Million in Dormant Bitcoin Stir From 2010-2017 Wallets

Recent data reveals that so-called ‘sleeping bitcoin’ wallets, established from 2010 to 2017, transacted about 659.14 bitcoins, valued at approximately $28.26 million, during the initial fortnight of this year. A significant portion of this activity originated from wallets created in 2017, with 167.3812 bitcoins being moved from that period.

Old ‘Sleeping Bitcoin’ Wallets Spring to Life, Transacting $28 Million in 2024

In contrast to last year’s surge in bitcoin transactions primarily from 2011 and 2012, this year has witnessed fewer bitcoin movements from long-standing vintage addresses. Btcparser.com, a blockchain analysis website monitoring over 64,000 sleeping bitcoin addresses, reported that roughly 659.1406 bitcoins from accounts created between 2010 and 2017 were transacted for the first time.

The bulk of the vintage bitcoin (BTC) spent this year primarily came from wallets established in the years 2013 to 2017. Notably, wallets from 2017 led the way with 167.3812 BTC transactions. Sleeping bitcoin wallets created in 2016 were also active, with 131.2377 BTC being moved. Additionally, 56.3493 BTC from 2015 and 139.6275 BTC from 2014 wallets were transacted for the first time in years, with five and six transactions respectively. The year 2013 witnessed six unique wallets send six transactions totaling 144.5449 BTC.

While there were no transactions from 2012 wallets, an interesting movement occurred with 20 BTC from a wallet created on May 15, 2011. This amount was spent on January 11, 2024, at block height 824,979. There was also a minimal 2010 BTC transaction this year, moving only 0.00000547 BTC, but the wallet still retains its initial 50 BTC, now valued at $2.1 million. Remarkably, this wallet’s value soared from $2.50 to $2.1 million, considering BTC’s initial trading price of $0.05 per coin when the wallet was created.

In contrast, last year, especially towards the end of 2023, witnessed more transactions from dormant BTC addresses dating back to 2011 and 2012. Transactions from 2010 wallets have become increasingly scarce. However, December 4, 2023, marked a significant movement where 20 block rewards, each containing 50 BTC, were spent, totaling 1,000 BTC. This transaction was from an old-school bitcoin whale who has transacted over 14,000 BTC since 2020 from wallets established in 2010.

What do you think about the vintage bitcoin spends so far in 2024? Share your thoughts and opinions about this subject in the comments section below.