Someone Just Redeemed a 15-Year-Old Physical Bitcoin, Scoring $1.78 Million in BTC
Summary
A 15-year-old Casascius physical Bitcoin coin was redeemed on-chain, unlocking 25 BTC worth about $1.78 million. The coin was created in December 2011, when its Bitcoin value was under $100. Casascius coins were physical collectibles with a hidden private key under a tamper-evident hologram, designed as a proof-of-concept and conversation piece for Bitcoin. As Bitcoin’s price rose, these coins became highly valuable collectibles, often trading above face value even when unredeemed. The redeemed coin came from the 25-BTC “Series 1” batch; 345 were minted and 236 have now been redeemed. Redemptions have increased over time, though still not at the pace seen during Bitcoin’s 2017-2018 surge.
