Uncovering the top Bitcoin holders: Global wallet address analysis and holdings

Original source: EarnBIT

Original translation: Vernacular Blockchain

With nearly 500 million wallet addresses, Bitcoin has become a game-changer destined for longevity.

As the king of the cryptocurrency space, Bitcoin has come a long and challenging journey since its humble beginnings in 2009, with hundreds of thousands of transactions taking place every day.But do you know who the big Bitcoin holders are?

Who are the top Bitcoin holders?

The largest Bitcoin holders are corporate entities, including some institutions and crypto CEXs.CEXs store a large number of users' crypto assets in cold wallets. Due to the nature of crypto transactions, these addresses are constantly changing.

There are an estimated 106 million Bitcoin holders worldwide, and while 460 million addresses have been used for transactions, 288 million of these addresses do not hold any Bitcoin.

How to identify Bitcoin holders?

The list of large Bitcoin holders is constantly changing due to the flow of funds between wallets.As of May 15, 2024, according to data from blockchain browsers, the number of Bitcoins held by the top ten addresses ranged from 69,370 BTC to 248,597 BTC.

The Bitcoin white paper recommends creating a new address for each transaction. But due to the nature of encrypted transactions, they are semi-anonymous to a certain extent: if a person publicly shares their wallet address, all of their transactions can be easily traced back.

Blockchain analysis also reveals the interconnection between wallets and real-world identities. Investigators, regulators, and compliance teams use on-chain tools to detect and prevent criminal behavior.

Bitcoin.org has stated: "Bitcoin is designed to allow users to settle payments with acceptable privacy, just like any other form of currency. However, Bitcoin is not anonymous and does not provide the same level of privacy as cash."

Satoshi Nakamoto's Bitcoin Wallet

The identity of Satoshi Nakamoto, the anonymous creator of Bitcoin, remains a mystery, but he holds 1 million Bitcoins. Since Satoshi Nakamoto mined the genesis block on January 3, 2009, one of his addresses is easy to find: 1A1zP1eP5QGefi2DMPTfTL5SLmv7DivfNa.

The wallet currently holds approximately 99.84 BTC, with no record of outgoing transactions. However, Satoshi may have hundreds or even thousands of other independent addresses. These dormant funds add to his mystique.

Top Bitcoin Holders and Their Wallet Addresses in 2024

Here are the ten largest individual wallets and their owners, as determined by public data and blockchain intelligence.

1) BN (Cold Wallet 1) - 248597.48 BTC

Not surprisingly, the world's largest crypto CEX manages the largest wallet, holding more than 1.2% of all circulating Bitcoin. Outflows are very rare - the most recent outflow occurred in January 2023, involving 2,000 BTC.

Bitcoin address: 34xp4vRoCGJym3xR7yCVPFHoCNxv4Twseo

BN cold wallet statistics as of May 16, 2024. Source: BitInfoCharts

2) Bitfinex - 180010.07 BTC

Bitfinex is an established CEX founded in 2012. Although it has suffered several major security breaches and its historical record is not perfect, as of May 15, 2024, it ranks 10th in terms of trading volume. The most recent outflow transaction occurred in April 2024, with an amount of 4,000 BTC.

Bitcoin address: b1qgdjqv0av3q56jvd82tkdjpy7gdp9ut8tlqmgrpmv24sq90ecnvqqjwww97

3) Robinhood - 136295.81 BTC

Robinhood is a US-based zero-commission trading platform that offers trading in stocks, ETFs, cryptocurrencies, and options. It attracts newbies with user-friendly tools and deposit offers, but has also been criticized for promoting high-risk activities.

According to BitInfoCharts, the balance of the wallet has not seen any significant outflows since its inception in May 2023. As of now, Robinhood has not confirmed ownership of the wallet, but Arkham Intelligence, a blockchain analysis platform, has linked it to the wallet.

Bitcoin Address: bc1ql49ydapnjafl5t2cp9zqpjwe6pdgmxy98859v2

4) FBI (Bitfinex Funds) - 94643.30 BTC

The funds in this wallet were stolen from Bitfinex by a hacker couple in 2016. US authorities have recovered a portion of the funds (120,000 BTC).

The investigation, conducted jointly by the FBI, IRS-CI, and HSI, identified the suspects based on gift card purchase records. The wallet, which is controlled by US federal authorities, was created in February 2022, and only a small amount of funds have flowed into transactions after the initial deposit.

Stolen

Bitfinex funds were consolidated into a single wallet after 23 transfers. Source: Bitcoin.com

Bitcoin address: bc1qazcm763858nkj2dj986etajv6wquslv8uxwczt

5) BN (Cold Wallet 2) - 82833.46 BTC

Relatively speaking, BN's second largest wallet has experienced frequent outflows. The most recent outflow was in April 2024, with more than 7,910 BTC flowing out.

Bitcoin Address: 3M219KR5vEneNb47ewrPfWyb5jQ2DjxRP6

6) Anonymous Mt. Gox Hacker - 79957.26 BTC

In 2011, approximately 80,000 BTC was stolen from Japan-based Mt. Gox. Three years later, the CEX processed more than 70% of all Bitcoin buy and sell transactions before it ceased operations following revelations of theft, fraud, and mismanagement of funds.

The wallet’s history shows unauthorized inflows from the former Bitfinex CEO. No outflows have occurred since 2011, with only some small deposits.

Bitcoin address: 1FeexV6bAHb8ybZjqQMjJrcCrHGW9sb6uF

Transaction distribution traced back to the hacker address. Source: Bitcoin.com

7) Anonymous holder - 78317.03 BTC

This address was activated on March 23, 2024, and no funds have been transferred out of it. Activity since the initial deposit is very limited and the holder remains unknown.

Bitcoin address: bc1q8yj0herd4r4yxszw3nkfvt53433thk0f5qst4g

8) Tether (cold wallet) - 75354.08 BTC

Arkham Intelligence confirmed that the leading stablecoin issuer received thousands of Bitcoin from Bitfinex's hot wallet. Tether's wallet began operating in September 2022 and only 0.0576 BTC was sent in 50 transactions.

Bitcoin address: bc1qjasf9z3h7w3jspkhtgatgpyvvzgpa2wwd2lr0eh5tx44reyn2k7sfc27a4

9) BN (Cold Wallet 3) - 75177.38 BTC

The third largest address associated with BN has been dormant since March 2024, before which it received nearly $5 billion worth of Bitcoin.

Bitcoin address: 3E97AjYaCq9QYnfFMtBCYiCEsN956Rvpj2

Transaction history of BN wallet as of May 16, 2024. Source: BitInfoCharts

10) FBI (Silk Road Funds) - 69370.17 BTC

Silk Road was the first modern darknet market shut down in 2013 and was used for drug dealing, money laundering, and other illegal activities using Bitcoin. It served as an underground service for a network that allowed users to operate anonymously.

The bitcoins in this wallet did not come directly from Silk Road. A hacker hacked into the marketplace between 2012 and 2013 and stole the bitcoins. In 2020, he handed them over to U.S. authorities.

Bitcoin address: bc1qa5wkgaew2dkv56kfvj49j0av5nml45x9ek9hz6

Top 5 Institutional Bitcoin Holders

1) MicroStrategy Incorporated - 214,400 BTC

The business intelligence provider, led by cryptocurrency advocate Michael Saylor, ranks first among companies holding BTC. According to its first quarter 2024 financial report, its Bitcoin holdings reached 214,400 after its latest acquisition in April.

At current prices, these holdings are worth about $13.5 billion, and the company has reportedly made about $6 billion in paper profits from Bitcoin.A one-time internet entrepreneur, Saylor once lost $6 billion in a single day, but then made billions on Bitcoin's rise, sending the company's stock soaring.

Ranking of companies and countries by Bitcoin holdings as of May 6, 2024. Source: Independent

With more than 1% of all Bitcoins in existence, MicroStrategy owns more of the cryptocurrency than any single country. Its holdings exceed Marathon Digital Holdings by more than ten times.

MicroStrategy's stock is widely viewed as a proxy for Bitcoin for traditional investors. The year-to-date gain reaches 138.03%, which supports its inclusion in the MSCI World Index, scheduled to take effect on May 31.

2) Marathon Digital Holdings, Inc.

As the second largest listed corporate holder, the US mining company owns more than 17,631 bitcoins, worth more than $1.5 billion, including the company's holdings after selling about 600 bitcoins earlier.

Unlike MicroStrategy, Marathon Digital failed to meet its first quarter revenue expectations, mining 34% less Bitcoin due to equipment failures, maintenance, and weather-related obstacles. The decline has brought its stock price down 14.01% year-to-date.

The company plans to sell more of its Bitcoin holdings "to support monthly operations, manage treasury reserves, and for general corporate purposes."

3) Tesla Inc.

The auto giant founded by Elon Musk entered the Bitcoin market in February 2021, acquiring $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin in search of diversified investment channels and the best profit value. The company sold 75% of it in the following year due to concerns about low liquidity caused by China's COVID-19 lockdown.

According to Arkham's estimates, the electric car maker owns about 11,509 Bitcoins as of April 2024. The balance sheet for the first quarter shows that net digital assets remain unchanged from the fourth quarter of 2022. Bitcoin accounts for the vast majority of funds.

Despite accepting DOGE as a form of payment for goods, Tesla owns very few of this Memecoin. Its stock performance has declined recently, and it is down 29.64% year-to-date.

4) Coinbase Global, Inc.

The US-based company is the world's largest listed CEX, holding more than 9,100 Bitcoins. It occupies a major position in the cryptocurrency space, providing services to retail users and institutions and custodial hundreds of thousands of Bitcoins.

Similar to MicroStrategy, Coinbase has seen a rise in its stock price since the beginning of 2024.

Its stock price is up 26.44% year-to-date, thanks to the surge in Bitcoin prices, despite a regulatory crackdown by the SEC.

4) Coinbase Global, Inc.

The US-based company is the world's largest listed CEX, holding more than 9,100 Bitcoins.

Similar to MicroStrategy, Coinbase has seen a rise in its stock price since the beginning of 2024.

Despite a regulatory crackdown by the SEC, its stock price is up 26.44% year-to-date, thanks to the surge in Bitcoin prices.

5) Hut 8 Corp.

The Canadian mining company is the only non-U.S. company among the top five listed holders and the second-largest listed mining company, with about 9,100 bitcoins.

According to Benchmark's report, these holdings provide "substantial liquidity and the ability to capture gains during periods of bitcoin price appreciation." It is worth about $592 million, equivalent to about 82% of Hut 8's market value.

Similar to Marathon Digital, the company has had financial difficulties this year, with its stock price down 33.81% year to date.

Summary

Buying Bitcoin and holding it for the long term, and then waiting for it to appreciate is one way to make money, but now the development of various assets and financial products also provides opportunities for indirect participation, including Bitcoin ETFs (spot and futures), stocks of entities with large Bitcoin holdings, and funds investing in Bitcoin or blockchain-related companies.

It can be seen that Bitcoin has a complex and wide user base driven by institutions, CEXs and service agencies, and its user portrait can give us an understanding of the current participation and adoption rate of Bitcoin.

The total number of Bitcoin users is not equal to the number of addresses. However, the 500 million transactions per day and 67 million wallets with a balance of at least $1 indicate the market's active participation and increasing acceptance of Bitcoin.

Original link

欢迎加入律动 BlockBeats 官方社群：

Telegram 订阅群： https://t.me/theblockbeats

Telegram 交流群： https://t.me/BlockBeats_App

Twitter 官方账号： https://twitter.com/BlockBeatsAsia