Blockchain intelligence firm Arkham reported on Friday that $8.6 billion worth of Bitcoin was moved on Thursday for the first time in over 14 years.
Despite the massive transfers, Arkham stated that “there are no indications that this whale is selling Bitcoin.”
The firm believes the transfers — eight in total, each involving 10,000 BTC — are likely linked to address upgrades from legacy wallets to modern SegWit addresses.
“Yesterday’s $8 billion transfers were possibly related to address upgrades, moving from 1-addresses to bc1q-addresses,” Arkham posted on X.
The coins were originally deposited in 2011 and had remained dormant until now.
Speculation and Security Concerns Emerge
10x Research commented that while no sell-off is confirmed, early holders may be gradually offloading assets in response to ETF and corporate treasury demand.
Meanwhile, Coinbase’s Conor Grogan raised a more concerning theory, suggesting the possibility of a hack.
“If true… this would be by far the largest heist in human history,” Grogan speculated.
Former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao reacted humorously, saying, “I got into crypto too late,” after seeing the 2011 wallets move.