Sleeping bitcoins are starting to wake up as whales move funds around

• Sleeping bitcoins are tokens that have been held in wallets for a long time, in anticipation of price surges.
  
• Data shows that 14 such spends have happened in 2022 already.
  
• The fact that most Bitcoin is never converted to fiat has been a point of concern for many.

Crypto experts and bankers have often said that most Bitcoins are perennially held in wallets and never converted to fiat currency is a concern for the token’s status as a medium of exchange. In fact, it was amongst the key concerns cited by investment banker JPMorgan last year, when it warned El Salvador against accepting Bitcoin as legal tender.

However, this may be set to change.

According to Btcparser.com, a website that tracks the Bitcoin market, 81.79 bitcoins were first minted in 2011. were moved for the first time in 11 years on March 27. The data showed that 14 spends of ‘sleeping bitcoin’ have already happened this year.

At that time, the tokens were worth $3.65 million and originated in January of 2011. When they were first minted, the coins were priced somewhere in the $1-4 range.

This isn’t the first time such sleeping bitcoins have been moved. In October 2021, a miner who acquired 50 bitcoin in May 2010 spent the funds for the first time in 11 years and five months. At the time, Bitcoin.com pointed out that the tokens had appreciated in value by 76,249,900% during that time if they were to be cashed out at the time.

Earlier this month, a crypto whale also moved 429 bitcoin that was first minted in 2010. Those coins were worth $16.8 million at the time.

To be sure, it may still be early to take this as a good sign. It’s more likely that the funds are being moved around in anticipation of market movements or for other purposes. The whales who held these tokens have moved them from the holding wallets but haven’t converted them to real-world cash yet.

“So far for 2022, there’s been approximately 14 BTC spends from 2011 ‘sleeping bitcoin’ stashes, four in January, seven in February, and three so far in March. Before the two 2011 spends today, the last one occurred on the first day of March at block height 725,515,” Bitcoin.com noted in its report.

Bitcoin surges in March
Bitcoin has also been in recovery mode over the past month. According to Coinmarketcap, the value of Bitcoin increased from around $39,000 to over $47,000 in March. The token’s value appreciated by 5% over the past week.

The 19 millionth Bitcoin will be mined into existence in the next seven days. The coins that were moved on Sunday were part of block rewards, which are given to miners for successfully mining a block of Bitcoin.
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