Today in crypto, a Coinbase executive speculates over the slight possibility that the recent movement of $8.6 billion worth of Bitcoin was the result of a hack. Meanwhile, a Belgian court sentenced three people for their roles in a cryptocurrency-related kidnapping.
‘Small possibility’ $8.6B Bitcoin transfer was a hack: Coinbase exec
Conor Grogan, Coinbase’s head of product, says there’s a slight chance the $8.6 billion worth of Bitcoin moved on Thursday — from eight wallets that had held the Bitcoin for over 14 years — was caused by a hack, and if so, it could be the largest robbery ever.
“If true (again, I’m speculating on straws here), this would be by far the largest heist in human history,” Grogan said in an X post on Friday, after raising the slim chance that the $8.6 billion worth of Bitcoin moved from eight separate wallets was the work of bad actors.
“There is a small possibility that the $8B in BTC that recently woke up were hacked or compromised private keys,” Grogan said, pointing out a suspicious Bitcoin Cash transaction made before the significant transfers on Thursday involving 10,000 Bitcoin at a time.
Movement of 14-year-old Bitcoin sparks renewed Satoshi rumors
Bitcoin’s (BTC) price slipped on US Independence Day, coinciding with a massive whale moving coins for the first time in over a decade.
The BTC/USD exchange rate declined nearly 2%, falling below the key $108,000 level, according to Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView data.
Onchain data showed that a Bitcoin OG, dormant for 14 years, transferred half of their 80,000 BTC, likely with the intention to sell. If they do, the holder would turn an initial $62,000 investment into roughly $4 billion.
Naturally, the reawakening of the address has sparked rumors that the transaction could be linked to Satoshi Nakamoto, Bitcoin’s pseudonymous creator, who disappeared more than a decade ago.
The coins are moving at a time when corporate adoption of Bitcoin is rising. Industry data shows that 255 companies now hold a combined 3.47 million Bitcoin, accounting for about 3.97% of the total supply.
Belgian court sentences three in kidnapping of crypto investor’s wife
A Belgian court has sentenced three people for their roles in a cryptocurrency-related kidnapping targeting the wife of local crypto entrepreneur Stéphane Winkel.
The Brussels Criminal Court handed down 12-year prison sentences to three kidnappers who attacked Winkel’s wife in December 2024, local news agency La Dernière Heure reported on Thursday.
The criminals were convicted of hostage-taking after abducting the victim outside her home, forcing her into a van and demanding a ransom in cryptocurrency.
Alerted by Winkel, law enforcement pursued the van and subsequently arrested the kidnappers and freed the victim after taking the vehicle off the road with a risky maneuver.
In addition to the prison sentences, the court ordered the three convicted kidnappers to pay at least 1 million euros ($1.2 million) in civil damages to the victim.
While holding the trio accountable, the court acknowledged that the masterminds behind the kidnapping remain unidentified. It also rejected the defendants’ claims that they were coerced into the crime under threat of death.
According to the report, the case also involves a minor, who is being handled separately by a juvenile court.