Whale Profits 17,000,000% from 14-Year Bitcoin Bet

Recently, a number of Bitcoin whales—investors who hold significant quantities of the cryptocurrency—have begun to liquidate their assets after keeping their Bitcoin untouched for over a decade. This activity highlights the changing dynamics in the cryptocurrency market. Last week, an anonymous whale executed a massive transaction, selling 80,000 Bitcoin for an astonishing $9.5 billion. A user on X (previously known as Twitter) was the first to alert the community about this monumental sale, which was subsequently covered by Tom’s Hardware. This seller originally acquired the Bitcoin in 2011 for a mere $54,000, resulting in an unbelievable return on investment of over 17 million percent.

Such high-profile sales are not isolated incidents, as more investors are seizing the opportunity to cash in on Bitcoin’s recent surge to all-time highs. Tom’s Hardware further reported that another long-term Bitcoin holder, speculated to be the early crypto advocate Roger Ver, also sold a substantial amount of his holdings for a remarkable profit. Allegedly, this seller purchased 80,000 BTC back in 2014 for approximately 0,000. Last week, he sold this stash for over $8.6 billion, reaping a profit of about 4 million percent.

In addition to these significant sales, two long-dormant Bitcoin wallets that had been inactive for fourteen years suddenly transferred 10,000 BTC each to new addresses this month. Back in 2011, acquiring that amount of Bitcoin would have cost just $16,000, but today, it is valued at around $1 billion, showcasing the staggering appreciation in the value of cryptocurrencies.

These recent high-stakes transactions serve as compelling evidence of the effectiveness of the HODL investment strategy—an acronym for “hold on for dear life”—which advocates for long-term holding of cryptocurrency investments instead of selling during price fluctuations. By retaining their assets through market ups and downs, these investors have capitalized on the significant growth of Bitcoin and achieved substantial financial rewards.

These developments coincide with a notable shift in governmental attitudes towards cryptocurrencies. The Trump administration has adopted a pro-crypto stance, which has played a role in propelling Bitcoin to its recent record high of $123,000 on July 14. Although the price has experienced a slight decline since then, resting at 9,273 as of Thursday, the overall sentiment surrounding cryptocurrency remains bullish.

Last Friday, President Donald Trump officially signed the GENIUS Act into law, which introduces lenient regulations aimed at promoting stablecoins—cryptocurrencies pegged to stable assets like the U.S. dollar. At the signing event, Trump openly discussed his connections with the crypto community, expressing his commitment to supporting their interests by stating, “I got you guys out of so much trouble.”

The Justice Department under Trump’s administration has also halted investigations into key figures in the cryptocurrency space, including Jesse Powell, the founder of the Kraken exchange, and the crypto futures betting platform Polymarket. This shift in policy reflects a broader acceptance of cryptocurrencies in the financial landscape.

In March, Trump took further steps to solidify his administration’s commitment to digital assets by signing an executive order that established a federal strategic Bitcoin reserve along with a stockpile of digital assets. He also appointed David Sacks, the former COO of PayPal, as the White House AI & Crypto Czar to oversee developments in the crypto sector.

Alongside his favorable policies, Trump has seen a significant increase in his wealth attributed to cryptocurrency investments. According to a Forbes analysis, a substantial portion of his net worth is now derived from crypto assets. Just yesterday, Trump Media, the parent company of Truth Social and the Truth+ streaming platform, announced a significant investment of $2 billion in Bitcoin and related securities, further underscoring the growing intersection of politics and cryptocurrency.

(Disclosure: Trump Media has initiated legal action against Gizmodo and 19 other media outlets in 2023, alleging inaccuracies in their reporting of the company’s financial data. This litigation is currently ongoing.)