The legendary “Physical Bitcoin” with a total value of over $120 million USD has just been activated after more than 13 years of dormancy, creating a wave of attention in the crypto community. The story becomes even more intriguing when former Mt. Gox CEO Mark Karpelès revealed that he once issued small-denomination physical Bitcoins as a form of direct reward for employees.
According to on-chain data, two Casascius coins containing 1,000 BTC each have been moved out of a dormant state that lasted over a decade. These are Bitcoin stored in physical form — coins or metal bars plated in gold, created during the early days of the market, with the private keys stored inside under hologram tamper-proof seals.
Their mechanism of operation is quite unique: to spend the BTC inside, the owner must peel off the seal. When the hologram is opened, the private key is exposed and can be used to transfer the assets onto the blockchain. This also means that collectible value of the sealed coins is often significantly higher than those that have been opened.
The Casascius coins were created by Mike Caldwell between 2011 and 2013, aiming to turn Bitcoin into a tangible asset for easier direct transactions. The products include coins and bars made of copper, silver, or gold-plated metals, each containing a private key card protected by tamper-evident hologram seals.
The issuance program ended in November 2013 after FinCEN determined that selling pre-loaded BTC coins constituted a money transmission activity and required legal regulation.
Karpelès stated that he does not hold the 1,000 BTC bars that have just been moved, but he previously owned many coins of 25 BTC and 1 BTC denominations during Mt. Gox’s peak, which he used as employee rewards. At the time of issuance, a 25 BTC coin was worth only a few hundred to tens of thousands of USD. At current market prices, just the 25 BTC is worth approximately 1.5 million USD — not including the significant collectible premium for sealed Casascius coins. It is not yet clear how many former Mt. Gox employees still hold these physical Bitcoin coins that have never been opened.
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