Spanish Institute To Sell Forgotten $10K Bitcoin Stash For $10M

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A Spanish research institute is set to profit from a forgotten $10,000 Bitcoin purchase from 2012 that rose 1,000-fold to $10 million.

The Institute for Technology and Renewable Energies (ITER), run by the Tenerife island council, acquired 97 bitcoins more than a decade ago as part of a blockchain research project, Insider reported. A a report By the Spanish newspaper.

Juan José Martinez, an innovation consultant in Tenerife, said the council is now finalizing plans for the sale with an accredited Spanish financial institution. Proceeds will fund new ITER research, including work on quantum technologies.

Bitcoin stock at research institute rises by 100,000%

The price of Bitcoin has risen since 2012, resulting in the institute receiving a 100,000% increase in its investments.

Bitcoin price (Source: CoinMarketCap)

In early October, when Bitcoin reached a new all-time high (ATH) of around $126,198, the stock was worth more than $12.2 million.

The Institute’s purchase of Bitcoin was not an investment

Martinez told the news outlet that the 2012 purchase was never intended to be an investment, but rather was part of a pilot project aimed at understanding Bitcoin’s underlying blockchain technology.

More specifically, the computing team at ITER explored how the Bitcoin mining process works.

“This was one of many research projects undertaken by ITER to explore and experiment with new technological systems,” Martinez said.

ITER is currently working with a Spanish financial institution authorized by the Bank of Spain and the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV) to facilitate the sale of Bitcoin.

Martinez said he expects the deal to be completed in the coming months.

Major US academic institutions are investing in Bitcoin

While ITER said purchasing Bitcoin was not intended to be an investment, other major academic institutions have begun investing in the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization.

Harvard Management, which oversees the university’s $50 billion endowment, disclosed a $116 million position in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) in one of its recent transactions. Quarterly deposits With the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Did you know?

Harvard’s portfolio contains more Bitcoin ETFs than Google stocks. pic.twitter.com/iiPWbEr2Cq

— Bitinning (@bitinning) September 19, 2025

This investment gives Harvard indirect exposure to Bitcoin price movements through BlackRock’s regulated spot BTC ETF (exchange-traded fund). It’s also one of the top five publicly disclosed stock positions in the university, behind Microsoft, Amazon, Booking Holdings and Meta.

Harvard’s investment came after US Bitcoin ETFs got the regulatory green light to launch in 2024. They have since attracted billions of dollars in investment, and give traditional investors a familiar way to gain exposure to Bitcoin.

Among these ETFs, BlackRock’s IBIT has been the most popular, attracting $63.34 billion in cumulative inflows to date, according to data from Farside Investors.

Spot US Bitcoin ETF Flows (Source: Persian investors)

Brown University also reported that it owned approximately $4.19 million in IBIT stock as of the middle of this year. And earlier this year, the University of Austin in Texas Announce A “Bitcoin Fund” allocated $5 million within his endowment. Proceeds will be kept in BTC for a minimum of five years.

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