Dread Pirate Roberts, the elusive creator of Silk Road, the online drug marketplace, had amassed a fortune in Bitcoin before his arrest—but just how much?
Estimates vary widely, but some believe that Dread Pirate Roberts had accumulated close to 700,000 Bitcoin by the time of his arrest—which would be worth close to $4 billion at today’s prices.
That may sound like a lot, but it’s important to remember that Silk Road was responsible for a significant portion of all Bitcoin transactions during its peak. So it’s not entirely surprising that the person behind it would have accumulated a large amount of the currency.
NOTE: WARNING: Discussions about the estimated amount of Bitcoin that Dread Pirate Roberts had can be dangerous. No one knows for sure how much Bitcoin he had, and attempting to guess or speculate can lead to inaccurate conclusions and assumptions. Be cautious when discussing this topic.
What is surprising is just how well Dread Pirate Roberts seems to have understood the potential of Bitcoin. While many early adopters were drawn to the currency for its libertarian ideals, Dread Pirate Roberts saw its potential as a tool for circumventing law enforcement and allowing people to buy and sell illegal goods anonymously.
Of course, we will never know exactly how much Bitcoin Dread Pirate Roberts had, because the vast majority of it was stored in wallets that can only be accessed with his private keys—which are now in the possession of the FBI.
But even if we never know exactly how much Bitcoin Dread Pirate Roberts had, his story is a fascinating example of how one person can amass a fortune in a brand-new asset class—and how quickly that fortune can evaporate when the law finally catches up with them.
8 Related Question Answers Found
As the world’s first and most well-known cryptocurrency, Bitcoin has been the Target of theft and fraud since its inception. To date, an estimated $1.75 billion worth of Bitcoin has been stolen, making it the most valuable form of cryptocurrency currently in circulation. The majority of these thefts have occurred through hacking of exchanges and wallets, but scams and hacks are not the only ways that Bitcoin can be stolen.
When it comes to Bitcoin, there is no such thing as too much information. The more you know, the better off you will be when it comes to making money with this digital currency. So, how much is Bitcoin in GBTC?
The Silk Road guy, also known as Dread Pirate Roberts, is believed to have had around 700,000 bitcoins at the time of the Silk Road shutdown. That would be worth around $4.
3 billion at today’s prices. It’s not clear exactly how many bitcoins Silk Road had, or how much Dread Pirate Roberts personally had, but we do know that Silk Road was responsible for around 4% of all bitcoin transactions at the time.
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As of September 2019, GBTC is the largest Bitcoin investment trust with a market capitalization of $2.8 billion. The trust holds approximately 173,000 Bitcoin, which is equivalent to 1% of the total supply. GBTC is available for trade on the over-the-counter (OTC) market and trades at a premium to the underlying value of Bitcoin.
When Mt. Gox, the world’s largest bitcoin exchange, collapsed in early 2014, more than 24,000 customers lost access to their money. Mt.
Mt. Gox, once the world’s largest bitcoin exchange, has been defunct since 2014. But the question of how much bitcoin the now-defunct exchange had when it collapsed still lingers.
A Bitcoin whale is a term used to describe an individual or group that holds a large amount of the cryptocurrency, typically in excess of 10,000 BTC. While the actual definition of a whale can vary, they are generally considered to be one of the most influential players in the Bitcoin market. Whales have a significant impact on the market due to their ability to buy or sell large amounts of Bitcoin without significantly affecting the price.
