New York Lawsuit Seeks Ownership of 39,069 Allegedly Abandoned Bitcoin Wallets
A New York filing seeks title to 39,069 dormant Bitcoin wallets said to contain about 3.7 million BTC, but analysts say many notices hit mostly empty addresses and any order would not bypass missing private keys.
A New York lawsuit filed on May 1, 2026 seeks legal ownership of 39,069 long-dormant Bitcoin wallets, with outside estimates putting their combined holdings at about 3.7 million BTC worth roughly $290 billion. The filing was made through two Wyoming shell companies and argues the wallets are abandoned property, but analysts said many of the notices appear to have targeted mostly empty addresses rather than the actual coin-holding outputs. Critics also said that even if the plaintiffs won in court, any ruling would have little practical effect because Bitcoin cannot be moved without the relevant private keys.
- Bitcoin: The largest cryptocurrency by market value, operating on a decentralized network where transfers require cryptographic authorization.
- Private keys: Secret cryptographic credentials required to control and transfer cryptocurrency from a wallet.