Blockchain research firm Chainalysis has found that as much as $32 billion worth of bitcoins have been permanently lost — never to be recovered.
Unlike physical currency, bitcoins can never truly be lost or destroyed. However, users can — and often do — lose access to their bitcoin wallets, effectively placing their coins in a network lockbox that will never be reopened. According to a recent analysis of blockchain data, the value of that lockbox is becoming quite large.
As reported in Fortune, blockchain analytics and digital forensics startup Chainalysis estimates that 2.78 million to 3.79 million bitcoins — or 17 percent to 23 percent of the total coins in circulation — have been lost forever. Since only 21 million bitcoins will ever exist, this is a significant sum, and at the present exchange rate, the value of these lost coins amounts to approximately $23.9 billion to $32.6 billion.
Source: http://strategiccoin.com/32-billion-worth-of-bitcoins-have-been-lost-forever-research-firm-chainalysis/
Unlike physical currency, bitcoins can never truly be lost or destroyed. However, users can — and often do — lose access to their bitcoin wallets, effectively placing their coins in a network lockbox that will never be reopened. According to a recent analysis of blockchain data, the value of that lockbox is becoming quite large.
As reported in Fortune, blockchain analytics and digital forensics startup Chainalysis estimates that 2.78 million to 3.79 million bitcoins — or 17 percent to 23 percent of the total coins in circulation — have been lost forever. Since only 21 million bitcoins will ever exist, this is a significant sum, and at the present exchange rate, the value of these lost coins amounts to approximately $23.9 billion to $32.6 billion.
Source: http://strategiccoin.com/32-billion-worth-of-bitcoins-have-been-lost-forever-research-firm-chainalysis/
