Bitcoin wallet dormant since 2011 moves $3.2 million toward FalconX-linked address

A bitcoin wallet, dormant since 2011, transferred approximately 50 BTC, equivalent to about $3.2 million, on Thursday. The transaction, recorded in block 961331 at 20:14 UTC on August 6, moved the coins to an address historically linked to institutional crypto brokerage FalconX. The wallet had received the 49.97 BTC on July 16, 2011, when bitcoin's value was around $10, and remained inactive since, according to Galaxy Research.

The transaction comprised four inputs from the dormant address and two smaller inputs from other addresses, with exactly 50 BTC sent to a SegWit address and a smaller output after fees. SegWit, a more space-efficient Bitcoin address format, generally results in cheaper transactions. The destination address, while newly active, has a history of sending and receiving funds from addresses identified as FalconX deposits and other wallets.

As of Friday, the 50 BTC remained in the dormant wallet, showing no on-chain evidence of transfer to FalconX or other exchanges. While the movement of such an old wallet can attract attention, it is unclear what the owner intends to do next, with transfers potentially indicating wallet upgrades, custody changes, or preparations for a sale.

The recent cold-wallet exploit, which affected Coinkite's Coldcard hardware wallet, serves as a reminder that even long-term, seemingly secure bitcoin holdings can become vulnerable if the software protecting their keys fails. Despite the potential implications, there is no evidence linking the 2011 wallet to the Coldcard issue, and its pre-dates the hardware by several years.

The disclosure has prompted long-term holders to reassess their storage setups, adding another reason for dormant bitcoin to suddenly move on-chain. Binance, currently the leading crypto exchange, continues to expand its services beyond spot and derivatives into real-world assets (RWAs), payments, savings, yield, and broader financial services.