Since the launch of Ordinals, each satoshi (the smallest fraction of a bitcoin) has started to have different values. For example, collectors are paying 1 Bitcoin for 0.00000001 BTC, believing that such a fraction is "legendary."
Among these rare satoshis are fractions of Bitcoin from the first network transaction, sent from Satoshi Nakamoto to Hal Finney, as well as the satoshis linked to the purchase of 2 pizzas for 10,000 bitcoins. However, also sought after are the first satoshis mined after each block and halving.
Due to the potential value of these satoshis, a developer believes that some companies are 'stealing' these fractions of Bitcoin, separating them from the satoshis that only have their face value.
Developer reveals transactions that are filtering rare satoshis.
Known as momonaut, the developer was surprised by his own discovery. Publishing two screenshots, he shows that 40% of mining pools use the same custodian. Furthermore, he reveals that this company would be separating valuable fractions of Bitcoin.
"Today I learned that over 40% of the hashrate sends their mining rewards directly to the same custodian," wrote the developer. "I believe the custodian to be Cobo, based on the flow of funds in the network and some circumstantial evidence."
"Whoever the custodian is, they are also actively filtering out 'uncommon' Ordinals satoshis from these newly minted coins."
In a study conducted by Livecoins, it's possible to see that the address mentioned by momonaut is separating every first mined satoshi from a block. Considered rare, there is only 1 in every 26 bitcoins.
According to information from the Magic Eden website, each of these satoshis is valued at $123. In total, the address holds 522 rare satoshis, generating a profit of $222,500 (R$ 1.1 million) for the company in question. For comparison, the face value of a satoshi is only $0.00042.
Is Bitcoin's fungibility threatened?
Firstly, it's necessary to understand that the numbering created by Ordinals is subjective. In short, satoshis are numbered by the order of their output in a transaction. Therefore, despite being favored by collectors, this interpretation is not objective.
In other words, no satoshi will be investigated for being linked to a hack that happened 10 years ago, for example. Nevertheless, Ordinals have gained significant traction in recent months.
If you want to know if you have any rare satoshis in your wallet, you can use specialized websites for that. However, their extraction is a bit more complicated, as you need to know where this fraction is located before attempting to separate it.