World's largest Bitcoin holders' list includes unexpected guest
Published on Sep 14, 2023 at 7:13 AM (UTC-4)
by Alessandro Renesis
Last updated on Sep 14, 2023 at 9:59 AM (UTC-4)
Edited by
Alessandro Renesis
These are the world’s largest Bitcoin holders, and the list includes some surprising names.
One in particular might not sit right.
READ MORE: Crypto bros are selling their luxury cars in droves as the market continues to bleed
We should point out that a Bitcoin address isn’t like a bank account, so that means it does not necessarily have a name attached to it.
But some Bitcoin addresses are labelled, and this is how we know who the holder is.
Financial players
BREAKING: MicroStrategy buys additional 12,333 #Bitcoin for $347 million pic.twitter.com/upMCtlloVq
— Bitcoin Magazine (@BitcoinMagazine) June 28, 2023
Eight of the world’s largest Bitcoin holders are financial firms.
Most of them are crypto exchanges like OKX (118,334 BTC), Bitfinex (192,508 BTC) and Binance (498,147 BTC).
But the list also features financial entities that offer both crypto services and traditional tools like stocks and funds.
Among others, we’ve got Robinhood (118,300 BTC), MicroStrategy (152,800 BTC) and Grayscale (643,572 BTC).
Now onto some more interesting names.
Satoshi Nakamoto
Satoshi Nakamoto, the anonymous founder of Bitcoin, is unsurprisingly also the world’s largest holder.
The true identity of Nakamoto is a mystery but what we do know is the person behind this pseudonym owns 1.1 million BTC scattered across different wallets.
Bitcoin’s max supply is capped at 21 million, so that means that Nakamoto controls roughly 0.2 percent of the entire stockpile.
It’s worth noting that Nakamoto created Bitcoin in 2009 and disappeared right after.
His Bitcoins have not moved in 14 years.
An unexpected guest: the US Government
US Government is the 5th largest #Bitcoin Holder https://t.co/LXcowQncO3
— Web3 Buzz (@web3buzztweets) September 12, 2023
It sounds crazy but the US Government is the fifth-largest Bitcoin holder in the world with at least 175,000 BTC to its name.
Most of these Bitcoins were acquired after the FBI shut down the black marketplace Silk Road in 2013.
Silk Road mostly relied on Bitcoin, so when the FBI arrested the founder, they also seized a large quantity of BTC.
The US Government has sold some of its Bitcoins since, but it regularly replenishes its stack.
This is because even though the US Government does not actively buy crypto, it has the right to seize ill-gotten gains whenever there’s a crypto-related crime on US soil.
Alessandro is an automotive journalist with 10 years of experience covering supercars, automotive history, emerging vehicle technology, and luxury transportation. He wrote the first article published on SupercarBlondie.com when the website launched in 2022 and has since built a reputation for insightful reporting across the automotive and transportation industries. His expertise is grounded in hands-on experience. Alessandro has driven every Tesla model ever produced, from the original Roadster to the Cybertruck, and regularly covers the latest developments in electric vehicles and automotive innovation. His passion for transportation extends beyond cars, he has even flown a Boeing 787 Dreamliner simulator in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. His reporting spans everything from classic American muscle cars and rare automotive discoveries to luxury yachts, private aircraft, high-end watches, and cutting-edge vehicle technology. Known for his deep knowledge of automotive history and ability to uncover the stories behind iconic vehicles, Alessandro brings readers a blend of historical context, technical expertise, and first-hand experience.
