Two long-dormant Casascius coins — each backed by 1,000 Bitcoin — have just been activated as of Friday, unlocking more than $179 million stashed away for more than 13 years.
Onchain data indicates that one of the Casascius coins was minted in October 2012, when Bitcoin was trading for $11.69.
The other was minted earlier in December 2011, when Bitcoin was valued at only $3.88, giving that Casascius coin a theoretical return of about 2.3 million percent, not including the cost of minting.
A little history behind Casascius coins
Casacius coins are physical metal coins or bars created by Utah-based entrepreneur Mike Caldwell, which were minted between 2011 and 2013.
Caldwell would take Bitcoin and mint it into physical coins, and they are considered one of the most sought-after physical collectibles related to Bitcoin.
Each Casacius coin contains an embedded piece of paper with a digital Bitcoin value and is covered in a tamper-resistant hologram. The coins and bars ranged from 1, 5, 10, 25, 100, 500 and 1,000 BTC denominations.
However, Caldwell suspended his business after receiving a letter from FinCEN, over concerns that he may have been operating a money transmitter business without a license.
How do Casacius coins work
Only 16 of the 1,000 BTC bars and 6 of the 1,000 BTC coins were ever made, according to some records.
The first person to redeem the private key by lifting the holographic sticker will receive the full value of the coin; after this, the coin will no longer have any Bitcoin value.
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However, redeeming a Casascius coin for its equivalent in Bitcoin doesn’t necessarily mean that a bunch of Bitcoin is about to flood the market.
In July, a 100 Bitcoin Casascius coin owner, “John Galt,” who had moved his stash from a physical coin to a hardware wallet, told Cointelegraph that he did so because his funds would be more easily accessible. He had no immediate plans to cash out.
“Having 100 BTC is life-changing for anyone. But the thing is, I’ve had it for so long that this was more about staying safe than suddenly getting rich,” he said.
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