Bitcoin Whale Turns $120 Investment into $178 Million After 13 Years

A prominent Bitcoin (BTC) investor, often referred to as a whale, has made headlines after transferring 2,000 BTC, valued at an astonishing $178 million, to Coinbase. This significant transaction comes after the investor held onto their Bitcoin since 2010, a time when the cryptocurrency was priced at a mere $0.06 per coin and had a market capitalization of approximately $250,000. Back then, daily trading volumes rarely exceeded $60,000.

The recent transfer of funds to an exchange typically indicates a potential liquidation of assets. This movement aligns with a broader trend of previously dormant Bitcoin wallets becoming active again, particularly following a surge in market prices spurred by Donald Trump's recent U.S. election victory. According to data from Glassnode, there has been a notable increase in wallets that have remained inactive for over five years, reaching a two-month peak.

As of now, Bitcoin is trading at $88,532, having recently experienced a pullback from its record high of $93,214 set on Wednesday. This isn't the first instance of older wallets becoming active as Bitcoin approaches new all-time highs this year. In fact, there have been at least two notable occasions where millions of BTC from the early days, known as the "Satoshi Era" (late 2009 to 2011), were moved from dormant wallets. While it remains uncertain whether these Bitcoins were sold, the potential for substantial profits at current prices is evident.

The trend of older wallets re-emerging could persist, as these early investors stand to gain significant profits at today's price levels. However, such movements may also restrict further price increases, even as some traders maintain optimism that Bitcoin could reach the psychological milestone of $100,000 by the end of the year.

It's important to note that Chainalysis has estimated that between 3 to 4 million BTC may be permanently lost due to inaccessible private keys, suggesting that some of these original wallets may never be able to cash out their holdings.