A bitcoin whale wallet dormant for over a decade moved 1,260.77 BTC on Sunday at block height 965770, transferring the $100 million-plus stash from a P2PKH address to a P2WPKH address. The wallet, first active July 9, 2016, cost $819,500 to accumulate at $650 per coin—an 11,366 percent gain at current prices near $79,891.
This follows a Sept. 5 transfer of 600 vintage BTC from a 2010-era wallet. September started slow for dormant bitcoin movements compared to August, but these large transfers are accelerating the pace of old supply entering the market.
Concurrently, Casascius physical bitcoin holders are peeling coins at scale. Galaxy Research tracked 21 series one Casascius coins spent in a single hour. On-chain analyst Sani flagged the pattern: roughly 75 redemptions of 1 BTC Casascius coins during the first six days of September, including 14 on Sept. 3, 15 on Sept. 4, and 40 on Sept. 5.
Casascius coins are physical metal pieces or bars minted by Mike Caldwell from 2011 to 2013, each embedded with a private key holding digital BTC. When the holographic sticker is peeled, the owner accesses the key and spends the bitcoin. Redemptions indicate holders are converting metal back to digital and moving off the network or to exchanges.
The uptick in vintage supply hitting the market—whether from whale wallets or physical coin redemptions—points to profit-taking by long-term holders. Bitcoin's recent rally has given these investors significant unrealized gains, and they are now executing. The timing also suggests some believe immediate upside is limited.
Bitcoin traded between $76,000 and $82,000 through Sept. 5, and this influx of older coins has coincided with modest selling pressure. The market now faces absorption of supply that has been off the grid for years. For traders holding positions, the liquidation pattern matters: old money leaving can create near-term headwinds.
