A German programmer Stefan Thomas, based in San Francisco, can’t recall the password which can unlock his Bitcoin fortune worth $220 million (Rs 1,800 crore). He has already made eight attempts to get through and after two more failed attempts, the password will encrypt itself and he will lose access to this fortune.
Over a decade ago, Thomas received 7,002 bitcoins as payment for making a video explaining how cryptocurrency works. One Bitcoin is worth $34,000 now and he has become rich beyond dreams in these 10 years, potentially $220 million (Rs 1,800 crore).
There is a minor hitch in unlocking the IronKey digital wallet on a hard drive where Thomas has stored the relevant details. He has written the password on a piece of paper which he has lost. For almost nine years, he doesn’t have access to this wallet and already made eight attempts to access it.
Talking to ABC7 News, he said: “You sort of question your self-worth. What kind of person loses something that important?” However, he said he is almost reconciled to losing it all and “made peace with his loss”.
Incidentally, things very similar to Thomas have happened to many other potential Bitcoin millionaires. According to Chainanalysis, a cryptocurrency data company, at least $140 billion worth of Bitcoins are lying in wallets that can’t be accessed.
