Legendary $10M Casascius Bitcoin Bar Finally Cracked After 13 Years—Only to Vanish Instantly
After over a decade of teasing collectors, the mythical Casascius Bitcoin bar—worth a staggering $10 million—has finally been unlocked. But the celebration was short-lived.
From treasure to tragedy in 60 seconds
The physical Bitcoin, one of the rarest in existence, disappeared faster than a meme coin's liquidity when the owner allegedly mishandled access to its digital fortune. A brutal reminder: cold storage only works if you’re colder than the market.
A relic of crypto’s wild west
Minted in 2012 by early Bitcoin pioneer Mike Caldwell, these gold-plated bars were the OG ‘not your keys, not your coins’ flex. Now, its saga ends with a twist even Satoshi wouldn’t have coded—proof that in crypto, you can lose generational wealth between two MetaMask clicks.
Finance jab: Somewhere, a Wall Street broker is sipping champagne and muttering ‘should’ve bought Treasury bonds.’
In one of the most gripping Bitcoin redemption stories to surface in years, a long-time BTC holder has cracked open a Casascius gold bar after holding it tight for over a decade, only to see part of his potential profit vanish in a flash.
Oops! Let’s dive into the whole story.
$10M Bitcoin Bar Comes to Life
Originally purchased for just $500 in 2012, the Casascius bar held 100 BTC, now worth over $10 million. After 13 years of dormancy, the owner finally unsealed the bar’s mini-key hologram and moved the coins into new wallets.
He didn’t cash out. Instead, recognizing the sheer value now attached to a single physical wallet, he opted to split the BTC across multiple addresses, a MOVE aimed more at security than liquidation.
What Are Casascius Bars?
Casascius bars, minted during Bitcoin’s early years, are now collector’s treasures. Only 35 unopened 100-BTC bars are believed to exist, according to Casascius records.
These gold-plated pieces carry embedded private keys and were once traded freely, even fetching 125 BTC during their heyday. But the market has since dried up. Today, they’re mostly auctioned as high-value novelty items, with physical security a rising concern.
Crypto Community Reacts
News of the redemption quickly lit up crypto Twitter. Crypto analyst @TheBTCTherapist, reacted: “Holy shit. $10 million dollar profit”.
Holy shit. $10 million dollar profit
pic.twitter.com/cLkvhq7EPs
Another user tweeted: “We have to all agree this is the best ROI”.
It certainly seemed like it. Until…
Mini-Key Mistake Costs $50K+ in Forked Coins
The redemption might have gone down as a masterstroke of patience, if not for a critical slip.
The owner posted the mini-seed on Bitcointalk forum, outlining his process to access the bar’s funds. That move cost him dearly.
Since the wallet predated major forks like Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and BSV, it also held rights to those coins. Within moments of the seed going public, someone swept 100 BCH, worth over $50,000, and additional forked coins.
THIS IS WHY YOU DON’T POST YOUR PRIVATE KEYS… EVER
“Okay, so remember how I mentioned I had one of those Casascius bitcoin bars? Yeah, it’s a 100 BTC one, and I got it back in 2012 for like $500.
Now that it’s worth over $10 million, I knew I couldn’t keep just sitting on it.… pic.twitter.com/BMWVkr7ogp
A user named Nexusrushrush later admitted to the grab but returned the BCH to the original address, by then already compromised and open to further theft. No offers were made to restore the lost value.
The security risks around holding real-world private keys have only grown sharper. The stakes are high for everyone!
