Dormant 2012 Bitcoin Wallet Reactivates: 0.25 BTC Test Send As 479.44 BTC (~$53.6M) Remains

(MENAFN- eTrendy Stock) A Bitcoin wallet dormant since roughly 2012 came back online today, September 4, 2025, sending 0.25 BTC in what looks like a test transaction. The address still holds 479.44 BTC, worth ≈$53.6 million at current prices. CoinMarketCap puts spot near ~$112,000 and shows 24-hour volumes in the tens of billions.

What happened:

• First on-chain activity in about 12.8 years.

• A single outflow of 0.25 BTC; no follow-up transfers yet.

• Remaining balance: 479.44 BTC (≈$53.6M at press time).

Why it matters

Small“probe” transactions often precede larger consolidations when long-dormant holders regain access and test keys, paths, or destination addresses.

In a recent parallel, an over-14-year wallet stirred in late July: after an initial 0.0018 BTC test send, nearly 3,962 BTC (~$469M) moved to a new wallet, per contemporaneous reporting that cited Arkham/Lookonchain data.

The 2025 pattern

This year has seen a string of“Satoshi-era” awakenings. Multiple old wallets-some inactive since 2009–2011-have shifted large sums.

Notably, coverage in mainstream tech media tracked ~80,000 BTC moving across eight long-dormant wallets in July, underscoring how such events can grab headlines even when coins don't immediately hit exchanges.

Bullish or bearish?

• Scale vs. liquidity: Even if the owner sold the entire 479 BTC, it's small next to Bitcoin's daily trading volume-regularly $50B+ across major trackers. That suggests limited direct price impact, unless flows cluster on thin venues or signal a larger wave.

• Sentiment backdrop: Bitcoin is trading not far below its all-time high (ATH) of ~$124,128, reached this year, per CoinGecko's ATH tracker. Whales often consolidate or upgrade custody during strength.

What we don't know (yet)

• The specific wallet address hasn't been publicly linked in initial chatter. On-chain watchers like Whale Alert and Arkham often publish dashboards after they verify flows; none were available at publication time.

• The intent behind today's move-estate process, key recovery, compliance-driven reorg, or preparation to sell-remains unclear.

What to watch next

• A public tracker page (Whale Alert/Arkham) tying this activity to a known cluster.

• Follow-on moves (consolidations, multi-hop transfers, or deposits to exchange-linked wallets).

• Order-book signals if any portion of the 479 BTC heads toward centralized venues.

Bottom line

Today's 0.25 BTC send looks like a key-check rather than a market-moving sale. It fits 2025's trend of older coins waking up, from test drips to headline-grabbing transfers.

With Bitcoin near record levels and ample spot liquidity, the immediate risk to price appears modest. But if larger tranches start moving-especially toward exchange addresses-this story could evolve quickly, as seen in July's $469M and multi-wallet awakenings.

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