Bitcoin OG holders have doubled their spending activity since May. Their coins had stayed dormant for more than five years. The group’s 90-day average reached about 1,500 BTC as prices struggled to move above $80,000.
In a post on X, CryptoQuant analyst Darkfost highlighted the increase during the latest period of price consolidation. The analyst linked it to unease among holders. Even investors who held through several market cycles appeared more active.
Also Read: Crypto ETF Inflows Top $1.20B as Bitcoin Demand Stays Strong
What Does the Rise in Bitcoin OG Spending Reveal?
The Bitcoin OG average now stands about 56% above the June 24 reading of 962 BTC. That reading was the first below 1,000 BTC since November 2024. Activity then reached its lowest point in nearly two years.
The measure tracks spent outputs through a 90-day moving average rather than relying on daily totals alone. It smooths daily changes and reduces the impact of single transfers from large wallets. This helps show changes in activity across the older holder group.
According to CoinMarketCap. Bitcoin is trading $79,901 at the time of writing. It gained about 0.33% over the past 24 hours, with prices ranging from $78,723 to $81,370. Several sharp swings left it struggling to stay above $80,000.
Darkfost warned that rising Bitcoin OG activity does not prove that holders are selling. Some transfers may reflect moves to safer storage after the Coldcard security incident. The analyst said those transactions could involve security changes rather than market exits.
A spent UTXO records coins used as an input in a new transaction. Bitcoin’s ledger tracks transaction outputs instead of account balances. An output becomes spent when its owner moves the funds to another address.
Why Do Bitcoin OG Transfers Not Always Signal Selling?
A holder can transfer coins to an exchange for a possible sale. Other reasons include changing custodians, combining outputs, or spreading funds across wallets. Replacing an old security setup also creates a transaction without proving a sale.
Destination data can help explain a Bitcoin OG transfer when an address has a known label. An address linked to an exchange or trading firm offers more context than an unknown destination. Even an exchange deposit does not establish that the owner sold.
Recent transfers highlight the limitations of dormant wallets data. Over a 10-day period in August, six wallets transferred 553.59 BTC valued at $40.15 million. These wallets had been inactive for about 12 to over 15 years prior to these transactions.
Out of these transfers, five transfers were made to wallets that have no associated exchange link. The other wallet transferred 40 BTC to a wallet tagged Boerse Stuttgart Digital.
The company offers custodial and trading facilities; it is unclear if the owner is selling, changing custodians, or restructuring his holding.
Why Did Coldcard Users Need to Move Their Bitcoin?
There was another set of transfers involving 28 dormant wallets that transferred 1,314.41 BTC on Aug. 20. Over 1,200 BTC came from wallets created in 2014. The blockchain recorded these transactions, yet the intent behind them remains unknown.
The Coldcard incident offers further context for Bitcoin OG movements. A bug in firmware allowed seed phrases generated by compromised hardware wallets to be revealed. Owners were advised to generate a new seed and move their holdings to protect their funds.
Even installing the corrected firmware did not help to restore credentials generated by the compromised software.
This is why those owners who were affected had to move their coins. Some network activities were connected to this issue, and some were related to the attacks on the exposed wallets.
What Could Push Bitcoin Theft Losses to 2,055 BTC?
According to K33 Research, almost 890,000 BTC was moved within seven days in the early days of August. It is considered the highest seven-day active supply reported in 2026. This happened when Bitcoin was trading in a narrow price range.
This 30-day price range became one of the narrowest price ranges for Bitcoin since 2023. Thus, the increase in network activity happened without any price breakout.
These figures included active supply, whereas the Bitcoin OG measure included coins that were inactive for more than five years.
According to Galaxy Research, 1,596 BTC was stolen during the three waves that were reported by Aug. 5. About 7,300 addresses were involved in these thefts. The company said that the total losses could reach 2,055 BTC in case of confirmation of a fourth wave.
This estimate was worth approximately $130 million at that moment. Around 90% of the stolen Bitcoin had remained in place after the initial attacks, according to Galaxy.
Also Read: NEAR Price Targets $8 After 234% Rally as Bullish Signals Strengthen
This article contains market analysis and price predictions. These are not guarantees. Crypto markets are volatile. Always DYOR. Not financial advice.
Be the first to comment