After waiting for 12 years, a British Bitcoin investor has recovered 61 Bitcoins that he was unable to withdraw due to the collapse of an early cryptocurrency exchange. At current prices, this asset is worth approximately 3.3 million pounds sterling, which is about 5 million US dollars.
This investor only goes by the name of Chris. He bought Bitcoin in 2011, investing about 1500 pounds at that time. A few weeks later, the value of his holdings began to rise. By the time problems arose on the relevant trading platform, the value of this asset had increased to about 4000 pounds.
Lacked withdrawal channels after early exchanges closed down
Chris At that time, Bitcoin was kept through an early British cryptocurrency exchange, Intersango. After 2014, this platform became inaccessible, and users lost the means to withdraw their funds. For many years thereafter, he has been trying to retrieve the assets in his account, but to no avail.
Lawyers complete tracking based on on-chain records.
In 2026, Chris turned to the British law firm CEL Solicitors for assistance. The legal team collected historical records and relevant documents to prove the ownership of this batch of bitcoins.
During the on-chain tracking process, the team identified a wallet associated with a defunct exchange that held thousands of bitcoins. After several months of processing, 61 bitcoins were eventually returned to Chris. The related recovery work was completed in May 2026.
- Initial investment of about £1,500
- The number of items recovered is 61 BTC.
- Current valuation is approximately $5 million.
Asset value has increased significantly as Bitcoin prices rise.
Calculated at the reported price, this initial investment has now grown to approximately 3.3 million pounds sterling. The article states that the current trading price of Bitcoin is around $78,000, with a slight increase in the past 24 hours.
Chris indicates that he plans to use a portion of the funds to purchase a larger family home, while continuing to hold the remaining amount.
