Coldcard Hack Unleashes Wave of Bitcoin Movement
The recent Coldcard exploit has sent shockwaves through the Bitcoin network, causing an unprecedented surge in on-chain activity. According to data from K33, a total of 890,000 BTC moved as the attack hit about 7,300 addresses. This represents a significant increase in active supply, with hot supply nearly doubling in just one week.
Bitcoin's hot supply, which measures coins active during the preceding seven days, climbed from 403,101.95 BTC on July 28 to 797,407.72 BTC on Aug. 4, an increase of approximately 394,306 BTC and a 98% jump in one week.
The price of Bitcoin, however, barely reacted to this sudden surge in activity, falling by only 0.5%. This disconnect between the price movement and on-chain activity suggests that the added activity was not simply due to enthusiastic buyers entering the market, but rather theft-related sweeps, defensive wallet migrations, internal transfers, and holders preparing coins for possible sale.
Exchanges have also seen a significant influx of Bitcoin, with Timechainindex.com reporting a net gain of 22,052 BTC since the Coldcard hack on Friday. This has led some to speculate that holders may be using exchanges as temporary safe havens while they replace vulnerable wallets.