This past week, a batch of five block rewards from 2009 were moved for the first time in almost two years. Interestingly, since 2015, only 48 block rewards from Bitcoin’s creation year have been spent. With the reawakening of these so-called ‘sleeping’ bitcoins from Bitcoin’s early days, it’s a good time to reflect on just how many of these rewards remain untouched today.

Over 1 Million Bitcoins From 2009 Still Unspent, Another 700,000 From 2010-2012 Block Rewards Remain Untouched

With Bitcoin’s blockchain and its Unspent Transaction Output (UTXO) model, users can track every bit of activity that unfolds on the network. The UTXO model is the backbone of how the Bitcoin network handles and records transactions. Instead of account balances, the protocol treats each transaction as a movement of value between UTXOs. Essentially, when a transaction occurs, it uses one or more existing UTXOs as inputs and generates new UTXOs as outputs.

Each UTXO holds a specific amount of BTC and can only be spent in full. If you need to spend less than the total amount, the transaction creates two outputs: one for the amount you’re transferring and another for the change that returns to you. This structure allows blockchain parsers and explorers to keep a detailed record of all previous transactions and keep an eye on new ones in real time. That’s exactly how a parser spotted the 2009 block reward transfers last Friday.

Despite dormant BTC wallets coming to life almost daily, a significant portion of Bitcoin’s block rewards (known as coinbase rewards) remain untouched. For example, after the 2009 blocks were spent on Sept. 20, 2024, a total of 1,074,352 BTC from 2009 coinbase rewards still remains untouched, according to data from bitbo.io. Meanwhile, timechainindex.com reports a slightly higher figure, with 1,074,402 BTC from unspent coinbase rewards originating in 2009.

According to timechainindex.com’s data, these bitcoins are spread across 21,488 addresses. It’s important to note that this research pulled metrics from both bitbo.io and timechainindex.com. While the two platforms share many similarities, there are also some key discrepancies in their data, especially after 2012. The 2009 data from both platforms aligns fairly well, showing that these unspent rewards make up roughly 5.4% of Bitcoin’s total supply.

A significant portion of these coins were mined by Satoshi Nakamoto, but as we’ve observed over the years, not all the rewards from that time can be attributed to Bitcoin’s mysterious creator. According to bitbo.io, a total of 578,483 BTC, valued at $36.5 billion today, remains untouched in dormant wallets from 2010. Timechainindex.com shows a similar figure, with 578,740 BTC from 2010 coinbase rewards still unspent, held across 11,598 inactive wallets. These unspent 2010 rewards account for 2.92% of Bitcoin’s total supply. Just today, on Sept. 22, 2024, a wallet created on July 14, 2010, spent a coinbase reward with 50 mined BTC.

Bitbo.io also reports 45,387 BTC in unspent coinbase rewards from 2011, while timechainindex.com lists 47,843 unspent BTC from that year. The latter site notes that these coins are stored in 3,089 addresses, representing 0.24% of Bitcoin’s supply. When it comes to 2012 block rewards, bitbo.io records 11,113 BTC left unspent, whereas timechainindex.com gives a slightly higher number at 11,514 BTC, spread across 1,928 wallets.

Nowadays, it’s quite rare to see Bitcoin from 2009 through 2012 resurface, with older wallets waking up less frequently. In contrast, dormant wallets created between 2013 and 2017 become active far more often, with blockchain parsers catching them more frequently than those from Bitcoin’s early years. Altogether, 1.71 million BTC remains unspent from coinbase rewards mined during the first four years of Bitcoin’s existence. This amounts to a staggering $108.2 billion in value or 8.73% of Bitcoin’s total market cap of $1.24 trillion.

What do you think about the unspent coinbase rewards from 2009, 2010, 2011, and 2012? Share your thoughts and opinions about this subject in the comments section below.