CoinDesk
A Bitcoin wallet dormant since 2011 moved its entire 75 BTC balance, roughly $5 million, to a new address on Thursday evening. The transfer also spent a 546-satoshi payment, worth less than 40 cents, that lawyers had sent to the address in May carrying a message reading "COURT-ORDERED LEGAL NOTICE" and a link to legal papers.
The wallet is listed as defendant No. 3,419 in a New York lawsuit filed by a plaintiff identified as Noah Doe and two Wyoming companies. The suit asks a court to declare the plaintiffs owners of Bitcoin across 39,069 addresses, roughly 3.8 million BTC including coins attributed to Satoshi Nakamoto, on the theory that wallets inactive for at least five years contain lost property claimable under state law. Because no one knows who controls the wallets, the court allowed plaintiffs to serve notice by sending tiny bitcoin payments to each address.
Why it matters
The move directly challenges the lawsuit's central premise that the coins were abandoned. Someone still holds the keys and can spend them, and Thursday's transaction proves it on-chain. It does not, however, identify the owner or confirm the lawsuit prompted the move.
Other named wallets have stirred as well. In June, a listed address holding 35.55 BTC since 2011 spent 15 BTC and returned the rest to itself as change.
Market impact
Even a ruling for the plaintiffs would not hand them the private keys needed to move the bitcoin, and the complaint itself values the "found wallets" at less than $10 given the uncertainty of recovering their contents. Thursday's coins remained at the new address as of Friday evening. Watch for further movement across the 39,069 named addresses, since each waking wallet weakens the dormancy argument at the core of the case.
Frequently asked questions
-
How much Bitcoin did the Satoshi-era wallet move?
The wallet moved its full balance of 75 BTC, worth roughly $5 million, to a new address on Thursday evening after sitting dormant since 2011.
-
Why was this Bitcoin wallet sued?
It is listed as defendant No. 3,419 in a New York lawsuit claiming that Bitcoin held in 39,069 addresses, about 3.8 million BTC in total, was abandoned and can be claimed under state law because the wallets were inactive for at least five years.
-
How was the wallet's owner notified of the lawsuit?
Because no one knows who controls the wallets, the court allowed plaintiffs to serve notice by sending tiny bitcoin payments to each address. This wallet received 546 satoshis, worth under 40 cents, with a message reading "COURT-ORDERED LEGAL NOTICE" and a link to the legal papers.
-
Does the transfer prove the lawsuit prompted the move?
No. The transfer shows someone can still spend the coins and challenges the claim that the bitcoin was abandoned, but it does not identify the owner or establish whether the lawsuit triggered the move.
-
Could the plaintiffs actually take the Bitcoin if they win?
Even a ruling in their favor would not hand them the private keys needed to spend the coins, and the complaint itself values the "found wallets" at less than $10 because recovering their contents is uncertain.
Lookonchain
WatcherGuru
CryptoSlate
Whale Alert
TheBlock