An extraordinary event unfolded in the cryptocurrency realm as an "epic sat" - an exceedingly rare satoshi mined from the fourth Bitcoin halving block - was sold for a staggering 33.3 Bitcoin (BTC), equivalent to approximately $2.13 million.
The Epic Satoshi Sale: A Historic Moment in Crypto
This historic sale of the satoshi, the smallest denomination of Bitcoin, transpired on the cryptocurrency exchange CoinEx Global on April 25th, approximately five days subsequent to its mining in block 840,000 on April 20th by Bitcoin mining pool viaBTC.
The auction commenced on April 22nd and witnessed a total of 34 bids before an undisclosed bidder secured ownership rights to the epic sat, designated as "sat number 1,968,750,000,000,000." Notably, the runner-up in the bidding contest offered 20 Bitcoin for the rare sat.
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Auction of the epic sat mined in the fourth Bitcoin halving block on April 20. Source: CoinEX
CoinEx Global, in a statement posted on X on April 25th, announced the successful conclusion of the auction, proclaiming, “The auction has concluded successfully, with the FIRST & ONLY epic sat selling for 33.3 $BTC (≈$2,134,000)." Additionally, the platform emphasized the broader significance of the event, stating, “This auction isn't just a bidding event; it marked the community recognition, media attention, & widespread embrace of #Bitcoin.”
Rare Satoshi: What Makes an 'Epic Sat' and Why They Matter
An "epic sat" refers to the first satoshi mined in the initial new Bitcoin halving block. With four halvings having occurred thus far, only four of these exceptionally rare sats are in existence.
These sats are assigned a unique sequence number within the Ordinals number system, which is based on mining timestamps. As there are one hundred million sats in a Bitcoin, an ordinary satoshi is presently valued at $0.00065.
However, certain sats hold special significance within the Bitcoin ecosystem. CoinEx elucidated, "Given that satoshis are assigned unique identifiers, they inherently possess higher collectible value. As periodic events occur within the Bitcoin network, some more frequently than others, scarcity is naturally promoted.”
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Bitcoin Ordinals explorers such as Ordiscan and OrdinalHub enable users to determine if a Bitcoin wallet possesses a rare sat by verifying the exact UTXO and output number. Individuals who own a rare sat can then transfer it to an Ordinals-supported wallet.
ViaBTC successfully mined the fourth halving block, block 840,000, at 12:09 am UTC on April 20th. In addition to receiving the new block subsidy of 3.125 Bitcoin, it garnered an astonishing 37.6 Bitcoin in reward fees, valued at $2.4 million at the time.
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The forthcoming Bitcoin halving event is anticipated to occur around 2028 at block 1,050,000, resulting in a halving of mining rewards to 1.5625 Bitcoin.
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