Conor Grogan, head of product at Coinbase, believes that transfers worth $8.6 billion in Bitcoin (BTC) on July 4th are “small possibilities” to be hacked. Grogan, who called his claims “extreme speculation” in Friday’s X post, said he found the transaction’s movements “very strange.” He added:
“If that’s the case (again, I’m guessing straw here), this would be the biggest robber in human history.”
80,000 BTC forwarding
On Friday, eight BTC wallets that had been dormant for 14 years moved a total of 80,000 BTC, worth about $8.6 billion, according to blockchain analytics platform Arkham Intelligence. The massive scale of the transaction exceeded the GDP of Montenegro, a small country surrounded by southeastern Europe, ranked 147th in GDP.
BTC moved to the original wallet on April 2 or May 4, 2011, Arkham Intelligence added that the transaction was carried out by a “single entity.”
The transaction began with a 40,000 BTC movement from the dormant wallet, followed by four transactions of 10,000 BTC each over a total of 10 hours. Bitcoin has not been sold since five transactions and has not been transferred any further. The BTC is currently held in eight new wallets.
Sani, the Maximialist of Bitcoin and founder of Time Chain Index, believes that the 80,000 BTC transferred belongs to Rogervell, also known as “Bitcoin yes.” Early Bitcoin investor Ver was arrested in Spain last year for US tax fraud. He is said to be owed at least $48 million in taxes, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ).
In response to X users, Sani said it had pointed out that the relocation could indicate that it had reached a deal with the IRS and that the settlement could be in the pipeline.
Grogan’s Hack Theory
Grogan pointed out Bitcoin Cash (BCH) test transactions that precede Bitcoin transfers, as potential evidence of foul play. The entity, which transferred 80,000 Bitcoin, transferred 10,000 BCH worth nearly $5 million, and returned to one of its original wallets an hour before the BTC movement began.
Grogan said the wallet owner may be trying to carefully test the private key without attracting attention in the test BCH transaction. This is because BCH transactions are not closely monitored by a platform that tracks whales’ wallets, he said. However, Grogan wrote:
“I say this because no other BCH wallets have been touched at all. Why don’t they clean these either?”
He added that he does not believe that the transaction was made by the transaction because of the BCH test transaction and because the BTC transaction was run manually.
Many people disagree with Grogan’s hack theory
Some X users who readily agreed to Grogan’s inference have ruled out the possibility that the BTC transaction is the result of a hack. Sani, for example, responded to users who mention Grogan’s posts, but stated that he didn’t think the transaction was related to the hack.
The former Pulsechain developer who passes through “Bretep” in X explained that it is actually impossible to hack a particular Bitcoin private key using current technology. In fact, there is one chance for more than 115 Quattuorvigintillions (75 Zero). He explained that people are likely to be hit by lightning for 10,000 consecutive years every day, adding:
“Security isn’t just powerful. It’s mathematically ridiculous to try out a possible technology. With quantum computing, it takes an estimated 30-40 years, but at this point it’s theoretical.”
X users going on “Bizzy” pointed out a logical flaw in Grogan’s conclusion. He said the fraudster would not have transferred the BCH token as there could be a risk of “transferring from owner” the BCH token before the BTC transaction.
Furthermore, Pseudonym X user Barthazian.Eth argued that the BCH transaction that Grogan noted was a suspicious handshake transaction that is common in large commercial transactions.
Furthermore, optimistic contributor and former Coinbase product manager Binji Pande pointed out that the slow pace of BTC transactions running does not point to the hack. He wrote:
“It’s hard to be certain it’s a hack given how slowly these happened. I think it’s a bit faster if you move these funds.”