Tag Archives: burn addresses

Famous Addresses

~2 BTC Burned in 2018

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The number of bitcoin ever to be mined may be capped at 21 million but the total supply will always be less. How much less is a critical valuation metric for bitcoin economists. There are a variety of ways and reasons bitcoin can be taken out of circulation. The purpose of this post is to examine one reason: “burn addresses”.

2,761.352575 BTC burned all-time . 1.9 BTC burned in 2018 down from 8.9 in 2017.
Continue reading ~2 BTC Burned in 2018 →
Analysis, Famous Addresses

8.97 Bitcoins Burned In 2017

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2,759 BTC Burned All-Time
The total amount of bitcoin in circulation decreased by almost 9 in 2017 due to “burn” addresses. Burn addresses, like the Genesis Block, are deadlier than “zombie” addresses, because there is no chance of coming back once BTC is sent to it. There are almost 400 known bitcoin burn addresses, i.e. valid addresses with no private key, to which, for a variety of reasons, people have sent 2,759.42507135 over the years. In 2017, 9 of these addresses received 8.97140133 BTC. That is way down from 2016 when 26.04 BTC was burned. Continue reading 8.97 Bitcoins Burned In 2017 →

Analysis, Famous Addresses

Lost Forever 26.04 BTC Burned In 2016

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Lost coins only make everyone else’s coins worth slightly more. Think of it as a donation to everyone.

– Satoshi Nakamoto

There will eventually be 21 million bitcoins mined however that will never be the true number in circulation. The distinction is important if you want to precisely measure bitcoin value and market capitalization which is setting new records. Not all bitcoin addresses can be spent. The genesis block can never be spent. Likewise any bitcoin sent to a “burn” address are also forever unspendable. A bitcoin burn address is like an impossible vanity address. There is no private key to a burn address and one would be impossible to generate. These are not merely ‘zombies‘ but truly gone forever. How many bitcoins have been “burned” exactly? Continue reading Lost Forever 26.04 BTC Burned In 2016 →