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An address that had never sent a coin since it was first funded in September 2013 spent 411.45 BTC on Sunday, a stash worth about $33.4 million, according to Decrypt. Galaxy Research tracked the transfer from an address beginning “13Coop” and tagged it as one of the wallets named in the so-called Noah Doe lawsuit.
Galaxy said the coins left in block 972,036 as two unspent outputs and landed in a single new address. Arkham data reviewed by Decrypt shows them sitting there, meaning the move was an address change rather than a deposit to a trading venue. Bitcoinist noted that whoever controls the keys transferred the coins between self-controlled addresses, which does not place them on an order book or convert them to dollars.
Also read: Satoshi-Era 100 BTC Moves After 16 Years, Worth $8.3M
Key facts
- The address sent 411.45 BTC, worth roughly $33.4 million, per Galaxy Research, on Sunday.
- Galaxy said the address was first funded on Sept. 11, 2013, giving it 13.1 years of dormancy.
- Galaxy put the holder’s average cost basis near $127 and the paper gain at more than 64,000%; Decrypt said Bitcoin traded near $130 at funding, implying a cost of about $54,000, while Bitcoinist cited a price near $131 and a similar $54,000 figure.
- Galaxy tagged the address as “Noah Doe #970,” among 39,069 dormant addresses named in the New York suit.
- Galaxy said the address was “dusted” in a 2025 campaign that sent small Bitcoin amounts carrying embedded messages to dormant wallets.
What the lawsuit claims
A pseudonymous plaintiff called Noah Doe, together with two Wyoming companies, filed the action in New York this year. Decrypt reported that the plaintiffs argue the wallets, holding about 3.8 million BTC, qualify as abandoned property under the state’s lost-and-found law even though the plaintiffs hold none of the private keys.
That is where the on-chain record gets awkward for the case. Moving coins requires private keys, so each withdrawal from a targeted wallet undercuts the idea that the address was abandoned. Galaxy head of research Alex Thorn has said the pace at which dormant “Noah Doe” coins move has been rising month over month.
Also read: White Hats Move 52.37 Bitcoin to Coldcard Recovery Trust
Old coins stirring across 2026
Galaxy’s data shows the 13Coop transfer is part of a wider pattern. A Satoshi-era wallet mined in 2010 moved for the first time in 16 years a little over a week before this transfer, according to Decrypt. In late September, about $161 million in decade-old Bitcoin changed hands over roughly two weeks, and last week a whale moved $377 million after holding through every major market crash since 2020.
Bitcoinist drew a line between what a ledger proves and what it does not: the chain records when coins last moved and where they went, but not why the keyholder acted. The outlet also said the transaction was visible in public blockchain records and analytics coverage, and that without identifying both beneficial owner and recipient, talk of a liquidation remains speculation.
Framing differs slightly between the two reports. Decrypt placed the stash at about $33.4 million and Bitcoinist described it as roughly $34 million at recent prices. Decrypt landed the fee-era price at about $130, Bitcoinist at about $131.
Why it matters
The transfer is the clearest test yet of whether a legal theory built on untouched wallets survives contact with the blockchain. If the coins were never abandoned, the class of wallets the suit targets shrinks. For holders of old coins, the episode is a reminder that any spend is visible, traceable and quickly read as a signal about intent, even when it is only housekeeping.
What to watch
The next signal is whether the 411.45 BTC at the new unlabeled address moves again, and how courts in New York handle a claim over wallets whose owners have now demonstrated control. Galaxy’s monthly tracking of “Noah Doe” wallet activity will show whether the recent acceleration continues.
Reported by decrypt.co.
Sources: Decrypt, Bitcoinist