Dormant Bitcoin miner wallets have resurfaced after roughly 15 years of inactivity to move 250 BTC, valued at over $15 million at current prices.

On Sept. 20, Lookonchain reported that five miner wallets, each of which received 50 Bitcoin as block rewards in 2009, were moving funds for the the first time in more than a decade.

On-chain data showed that the wallets received these mining rewards in early 2009 — a period that Bitcoin enthusiasts often refer to as the Satoshi era.

With Bitcoin presently trading at more than $63,000, the miners have held for an astounding gain of more than 1,000,000% in the value of the top digital asset, which was only worth a few cents at the time.

Who owns these wallets?

The movement of funds from old wallets, particularly from the Satoshi era, always stirs curiosity in the crypto community. The term “Satoshi era” refers to the period when Bitcoin’s pseudonymous creator, Satoshi Nakamoto, was still active, communicating online through forums between late 2009 and 2011.

Nakamoto mined the first block in January 2009. So, considering these wallets received their rewards shortly after Bitcoin’s launch, they likely belonged to individuals involved in its early days.

Some community members speculated that these early wallets could be connected to Nakamoto. However, since all five wallets moved funds on the same day, after more than a decade of silence, it’s plausible they belong to one or several related parties.

How many dormant wallets are left?

A Fortune report claimed that 1.75 million Bitcoin wallets have been inactive for over a decade. Many of these wallets hold significant amounts of BTC — purchased when prices were in the double digits— which are now worth millions.

These dormant wallets hold approximately 1,798,681 Bitcoin, currently valued at more than $120 billion.

In recent years, several Satoshi-era wallets have been activated, transferring BTC to new addresses. Some even moved funds to crypto exchanges, suggesting the owners may be seeking profits after nearly a decade of holding.

Marathon Digital reported a significant year-on-year surge in its Bitcoin production last month, defying expectations surrounding the halving event.

Bitcoin production increase

In its April operational report, Marathon revealed that it produced 850 BTC, marking a notable 21% increase on the year-on-year metrics. This uptick is primarily attributed to the 15% boost in its operational hashrate, now standing at 21.1 exahash.

The launch of the Runes Protocol and the Bitcoin halving event, which reduced miners’ rewards to 3.125 BTC per block, will have had a marginal impact on the data, with less than one month since the events.

Nonetheless, Marathon’s improved hash rate enabled it to capitalize on the increased transaction fees inspired by the Runes Protocol. Transaction fees contributed approximately 16% to the Bitcoin earnings in April.

Fred Thiel, Marathon’s chairman and CEO, said:

“In April, we achieved an all time operating hash rate high of 25.9 exahash. Transaction fees also reached all time highs around the Halving, which we were able to capitalize on with our Slipstream service and our proprietary mining pool. Just before the Halving, we earned an additional 4.25 BTC from Slipstream alone, and MARA Pool outperformed, capturing one block with 10 BTC and another with 16 BTC in transaction fees.”

Meanwhile, Marathon said it sold 600 BTC in April to support monthly operations, manage its treasury, and for general corporate purposes. The miner held 17,631 unrestricted Bitcoin as of April 30.

Consultant to Kenya government

In a parallel development, Kenya’s president, Williams Ruto, spoke at the AMCHAM summit and revealed ongoing discussions between the African country and the crypto miners about crypto regulations and mining.

Ruto said:

“Marathon Digital has been ushered to consult with the National Treasury Kenya on our cryptocurrency regime and to the Ministry of Energy to discuss its energy needs in connection with cryptocurrency mining here in Kenya.”

The firm also confirmed this development, adding that its team is discussing how its digital asset data centers “can spur energy development in the region and foster US-East Africa trade relations.”

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