A Casascius Bitcoin Gold bar earned $10M for its holder, but a leaked private key led to a $50K theft and compromised the wallet.
News of a BTC trader redeeming his 13-year-old gold bar instantly went viral in the cryptocurrency community.
The price of BTC has risen from a few dollars to six figures in recent years, making the individual a multimillionaire with a profit close to $10 million.
But soon after, $50,000 vanished from the whole amount of money? Why? Let’s talk.
Using Bitcoin Gold Bars, Bitcointalk User Made $10 Million Out Of $500
Earlier in May, JohnGalt, a prominent Bitcointalk user, made news when he redeemed his 13-year-old BTC Casascius Gold bar.
Notably, in 2012, more than ten years ago, he purchased 100 BTC for just $500.
One BTC was only worth $5 at the time.
The value of the identical token increased to $107k in 2025, making a $10M profit overall.
The cryptocurrency dealer disclosed that he had been clinging to the bar because he felt it had sentimental value and that the actual BTC was worth more than the money.
I didn’t want to redeem it, though. To me, a physical Bitcoin that hasn’t been redeemed feels like it’s worth more than just the money. I did try to sell it a few times, but it’s hard selling something that valuable, and you really can’t trust just anyone. I even looked into auctions, but I’d be getting less than what the Bitcoin itself was worth” reads JohnGalt’s Bitcointalk post.
Notably, Mike Caldwell designed these Casascius Gold bars in 2011.
A tamper-evident hologram and a secret private key that provided access to the tokens were included with every bar.
These now exist at a variety of prices and are regarded as collectibles.
The buzz around them is genuine since there are now just 35 unsealed bars.
Bitcoin News: What Went Wrong For Holder To Lose $50,000?
JohnGalt did not cash out the tokens despite redeeming the Gold bar.
Since keeping such a large sum of money in a single private key or even a physical bar was hazardous, he instead divided the $10 million worth of BTC into ten separate wallet addresses.
He did make one significant error, though, when he posted a guide on how to obtain these monies.
Viewers might see the confidential mini-key image he included. Nexusrushrush, a cryptocurrency user, claimed 100 BCH, an unclaimed forked coin worth $50,000, in the wallet linked to the mini-key.
These BCH tokens were made available to Nexusrush rather than Johnvolts.
Interestingly, the person quickly put the token back in the original wallet.
However, anyone might access the wallet because it has already been compromised.
