Rare Casascius Physical Bitcoin Activated, 25 BTC Transferred

A rare Casascius physical Bitcoin from 2011-2013 was activated on Wednesday, according to PANews. The holographic security label was removed, and the stored 25 BTC, valued at approximately $1.78 million, was transferred to a new wallet. Casascius coins were created by software engineer Mike Caldwell and came in denominations of 0.5, 1, 5, 10, 25, 100, and even 1000 BTC. Each coin's front displays a receiving address, while the private key is hidden under a holographic label on the back. Owners can reveal the private key to use the Bitcoin, but doing so diminishes the coin's collectible value. Caldwell ceased production at the end of 2013 after being informed by the U.S. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network that he was operating an unlicensed money transmission business.