Two bitcoin mining rewards from September 2010, 50 BTC each, moved on Friday for the first time in more than 16 years, and the way the coins were handled afterwards points to a single owner behind both. The 100 BTC were worth about $6.89 million combined when they moved, based on the values Whale Alert put on the two transfers, compared with about $3 per reward when they were mined.
What moved
Blockchain data shows the first coin, the reward for block 80,723 mined on Sept. 19, 2010, was spent in a transaction confirmed in block 975,628. It sent 49.99 BTC to a new native SegWit address and 0.01 BTC to a second one. The other coin, the reward for block 78,671 mined on Sept. 8, 2010, moved in the very next block, 975,629, splitting into 49 BTC and 1 BTC. Both transactions paid the same fee, 1,110 satoshis.
Both rewards had sat in pay-to-public-key (P2PK) outputs, the format early mining software used for block rewards. Unlike most modern addresses, P2PK writes the full public key on-chain. Every address that received coins on Friday starts with bc1q, the native SegWit format.
The transaction that ties the two coins together
The Block, which reported the moves earlier, said it was not known whether the two original outputs had the same owner. The chain itself offers a strong clue.
Within about 40 minutes of the first transfer, most of both coins had been regrouped. About 20 BTC from the first reward and 39 BTC from the second were combined in a single consolidation transaction into one address that now holds about 58.99 BTC. The rest sits at four other new addresses holding 30 BTC, 10 BTC, 1 BTC and 0.01 BTC.
That consolidation also swept up seven dust outputs of 546 to 548 satoshis each. They had been sitting at the legacy addresses that correspond to the two 2010 public keys: four at 1BU7pYQvW6CTaLhU39iDh7keaKbTpK4HXC, which matches the Sept. 19 reward’s key, and three at 1FFQgpEsQwqyf5psi5tayYFj7Yoz6Ru1tC, which matches the Sept. 8 reward’s key. Spending those outputs needs signatures from the private keys behind both rewards. Having them in one transaction is about as close as on-chain data gets to showing that one party controls both keys. It does not say who that party is, and it cannot fully rule out two parties signing together.
The new addresses drew attention fast. Several of them later received tiny payments carrying the on-chain message “Gm OG Miner I am a lone miner; I want to receive a reward from you.” None of the 100 BTC had moved again after the consolidation as of about 14:00 UTC on Friday.
Why these coins get watched
Dormant bitcoin from the early mining years draws attention because its owners are rarely known and because any sale would add supply that has been off the market for most of Bitcoin’s history. Friday’s moves came with bitcoin trading near $69,500 on Coinbase, after it slipped below $70,000 for the first time since August earlier in the day. So far there is nothing on-chain to suggest the coins are headed to a sale.
There is also a security angle. Because P2PK outputs expose public keys, they are the coins most often cited in debates over future quantum attacks on Bitcoin, including proposals to protect Satoshi-era holdings. The new bc1q outputs only reveal their public keys when they are spent. The two 2010 keys themselves, however, have been public on-chain since 2010.
Wake-ups like this are not new. The Block noted that five 50 BTC rewards mined in April 2010 moved to SegWit addresses in July 2025 after about 15 years, and that a March 2024 transaction combined 40 rewards from 2010, totaling 2,000 BTC.
FAQ
How much bitcoin moved?
100 BTC, from two 50 BTC block rewards mined on Sept. 8 and Sept. 19, 2010. Whale Alert valued the two transfers at about $6.89 million combined.
Do we know who owns the coins?
No. The owner has not been identified. A consolidation transaction that spent dust tied to both 2010 public keys suggests the same party controls both, but on-chain data cannot name them.
Were the coins sold?
There is no sign of that so far. As of Friday afternoon UTC, the coins sat at five new SegWit addresses and had not moved again after the consolidation.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.
