Satoshi-era Bitcoin whale wallets tied to Silk Road move $324 million after 12 years

Two Satoshi-era Bitcoin wallets that have been inactive for over a decade have suddenly sprung to life, transferring a combined 3,422 BTC, which amounts to roughly $324.2 million at current prices.

On May 6, blockchain analysis firm Spot On Chain reported that one of the wallets tagged “1NWPS” moved 2,343 BTC, valued at around $222.2 million. The funds in this wallet had been untouched for over a decade.

Satoshi-Era Bitcoin Whale Transfer (Source: Spot On Chain)

The second wallet, “1PiEK,” transferred 1,079 BTC, roughly $102.5 million. This wallet had been inactive even longer, with its last activity recorded almost 12 years ago.

Satoshi-Era Bitcoin Whale Transaction (Source: Spot On Chain)

Meanwhile, independent blockchain analyst Sani of TimechainIndex believes these addresses may trace back to Silk Road, the now-defunct darknet marketplace that heavily relied on Bitcoin in its early days.

He pointed out that a look into the transaction history of these wallets uncovered connections to historic UTXO consolidations, tying them to Silk Road as early as 2012.

Specifically, some recently moved funds originated from a significant 10,000 BTC transaction (TXID: 53952c…) believed to stem from Silk Road-linked holdings. These coins were then split across multiple addresses, including the two recently reactivated wallets.

His analysis also highlighted an earlier consolidation involving 19,940 BTC (TXID: 8b555a…), part of which ended up in a separate wallet later seized by the US government after Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht’s arrest.

Considering this, Sani concluded:

“The recent movement marks the first activity from these two wallets in over 12 years. The ultimate identity of the entity or individual moving these long-dormant funds remains unknown, though their origins are clearly linked to Silk Road.”

The post Satoshi-era Bitcoin whale wallets tied to Silk Road move $324 million after 12 years appeared first on CryptoSlate.