Thanks to the open format of blockchain, we know the addresses of bitcoin’s biggest whales, and who the top wallets belong to.
Finding out which wallet addresses influence bitcoin price and move the most cryptocurrency is actually fairly easy. In fact, this sort of information is widely available to anyone that understands how blockchain works, the underlying distributed ledger technology that bitcoin is based on.
While finding these addresses is a breeze, attributing them to specific people may not be as simple. Even less simple still is understanding how whales can affect your crypto prices. So while it may be just sheer curiosity that’s brought you in to take a peek at who has the richest crypto wallet, you may want to stay for the free crypto investment lesson.
Understanding things like how whales influence crypto pricing can help you get a better idea of how to invest your current holdings, or when to jump in and snag some crypto for yourself. Many of the major richest bitcoin wallets actually belong to bitcoin trading platforms. Which are great, as they can actually help manage your bitcoin wallet for you while supplying you with great trading advice. Pretty ideal setup for any newbs out there that want a bit of help getting comfortable with the market while protecting their coins from possible scams or poor choices.
The Not So Shocking Bitcoin Wallet Whales
● Satoshi Nakamoto
Expecting the creator of bitcoin to hold a decent sum of bitcoin in their wallet isn’t really a massive stretch of the imagination. Satoshi Nakamoto has been credited with the invention of bitcoin and blockchain technologies, and in the genesis block– or the first ledger entry in the bitcoin blockchain, it’s suggested that this clandestine creator owns a pretty penny.
This block reveals a wallet address attributed to Nakamoto to hold 900,000 BTC. Which is worth billions in today’s market. Nakamoto, however, knows how to keep their identity and their transactions under wraps- so knowing for sure that this wallet even still exists today is hard to say.
● Bitfinex
Bitfinex is one of the world’s foremost and well-known crypto exchange platforms, also happens to be the holder of one of the richest bitcoin wallets there is. As most exchanges and trading platforms keep separate wallets for their transactions- largely thanks to the Mt. Gox scandal– in which the world was shown the folly behind keeping all of your eggs in one basket.
Regardless, Bitfinex says they stash their massive holdings in an ultra-secure offline cold wallet. Keeping their funds securely tucked away from any hackers that may try to gain access to their richest via online avenues.
● Winklevoss Twins
In perhaps one of the most heavily publicized court cases of our time, Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss sued Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg for stealing facebook from them.
What made the court case so exciting was what transpired after the verdict. The twins were awarded $65 million dollars in compensation from the legal mess. Of that, they invested a whopping $11 million in Bitcoin. An investment that in 2013 sounded like lunacy and largely discredited the twins. However, their initial investment is speculated to have increased by more than 20000%.
Bitcoin Wallet Whales You Wouldn’t Expect
● The FBI
That’s right. One of the biggest players in the world crypto game is the US Federal Bureau of Investigation. In September of 2013, the FBI successfully raided the Silk Road, a deep web drug trafficking line. And with it came the “Dread Pirate Roberts” Ross Ulbricht and his pirate booty chest of over 144,000 bitcoins.
Despite this history of holdings- the FBI actually sold off the deftly acquired BTC at auction, where many of the richest bitcoin wallet holders got their start.
● Bulgaria
Again, through cracking down on organized crime and seizing the crypto assets of common criminals, Bulgaria came across their bit-riches in much the same way that the FBI did.
In 2017, a mob raid made by Bulgarian law enforcement officials resulted in the country gaining control of 213,519 BTC. More than enough to put them in the top spots of coin wallet whales as well as enough to pay off a quarter of the nation’s debt. Despite their worth, the country refuses to comment on what has happened to the coins, or where they’re being held.
● Dormant Addresses
A huge amount of bitcoins that should be market available today are stocked in offline and dormant addresses. These bitcoin wallets may be holding fortunes, but no one is moving them. Which can mean big things for future markets, should these silent whales begin making waves.
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