A long-dormant Bitcoin whale reactivated on Sunday, transferring millions of dollars worth of BTC on-chain after more than a decade of inactivity.
The wallet moved approximately $40 million in bitcoin to a new address at around 19:16 UTC, according to data from blockchain tracking service Whale Alert. The funds were sent from address “1KAA8GGhVjjUjVTz1HKAjCyGNzAKQd882j” to “bc1qm6m6d33d02edr0k8yj9jgt027zl6dvx6thjrxy.”
On-chain records show the wallet had remained untouched since November 2013, when the bitcoin was first acquired and subsequently held for over ten years.
The motive behind the transfer is unclear. Large holders often shift assets between wallets for security or organizational purposes, though such movements can also precede sales or transfers to exchanges. In this instance, the receiving address does not appear to be associated with any known exchange.
Dormant wallet activity has picked up since bitcoin surpassed the $100,000 mark in late 2024. Over the past year, several early adopters and miners have moved long-held holdings, with some eventually realizing profits following the asset’s sharp rally.
The trend peaked in July last year, when blockchain analytics firms identified eight Satoshi-era wallets—each holding 10,000 BTC—moving funds for the first time in 14 years. Those transactions occurred as bitcoin traded above $100,000, near its all-time highs.
At the time of writing, bitcoin was trading around $80,700, down more than 1% over the past 24 hours, according to CoinDesk market data.
