A wallet containing $442 million in Bitcoin became active Thursday after remaining dormant since June 2011. The address mined most of its holdings between April and June 2009, only months after the blockchain network launched.
Whale Alert reported that the unknown owner accumulated 4,000 Bitcoin through mining during the network's earliest months. On-chain analytics platform Nansen recorded a single transaction moving 150 Bitcoin valued at over $16 million on Thursday.
Blockchain explorer Mempool Space data suggests the wallet may have originally held 7,850 tokens. The address last showed activity in June 2011 when it consolidated 4,000 coins into one location.
Bitcoin traded at approximately $110,604 on Friday, valuing the whale's entire holdings at more than $442 million. The asset was priced at $194 in July 2010 when CoinMarketCap began tracking its value.
Analysis of Early Holder Activity
Blockchain analyst Emmett Gallic stated the whale once controlled 8,000 Bitcoin across multiple addresses. He noted the holder has been systematically selling from another wallet for years, now holding 3,850 coins after Thursday's transfer.
Mempool Space shows the address received a total of 7,850 Bitcoin, with the current balance displaying 3,850 Bitcoin following the recent 150-coin movement. The systematic distribution pattern suggests calculated position management rather than panic selling.
Broader Trends Among Early Bitcoin Holders
Another Satoshi-era whale holding 80,201 tokens began transferring holdings to Galaxy Digital in July after 14 years of inactivity. The final transfer from that address occurred on July 16, marking another significant movement from early network participants.
Crypto analyst Willy Woo noted in June that whales controlling more than 10,000 Bitcoin have been steadily distributing since 2017. Analysts said in August that early holder sales reflect market maturation as new buyers enter, rather than signaling concern about the asset's fundamentals.