Salomon Brothers Claims Rights to ‘Abandoned’ Bitcoin Wallets via OP_RETURN

A company operating under the Salomon Brothers brand has sent notifications to bitcoin addresses it deems “abandoned.” The firm intends to gain access to them, reports CoinDesk.

The aim is to protect funds from criminals and “rogue states,” according to representatives of the financial institution. The legal basis is the “doctrine of abandonment”, which states that assets inactive for 14 years may be considered ownerless. 

Salomon Brothers used special transactions to place messages on the blockchain. This involves the OP_RETURN script—a standard mechanism allowing arbitrary data to be embedded in bitcoin transactions.

The initiative has sparked debate within the community. Some suggest a connection between the company and self-proclaimed bitcoin creator Craig Wright. CEO of Naoris Protocol, David Carvalho, noted that Salomon Brothers “use the infrastructure of the first cryptocurrency as a bulletin board.” According to him, the firm has targeted large wallets, including an address with 80,000 BTC.

Bitcoin holders have been given 90 days to prove ownership. To do so, they must make a transaction or fill out a form on the bank’s website. 

Some users have already responded by moving assets to new addresses. A client of Salomon Brothers, whose name is undisclosed, plans to allocate part of the funds to a fund for users who have lost their keys.

The method of gaining access to the wallets remains unclear. Carvalho believes that the bitcoin community “is not doing what is necessary” to protect against threats such as quantum hacking. He described existing security proposals as “completely inadequate,” and their implementation pace as too slow given the risk to $700 billion in assets.

The doctrine of abandonment is a well-established legal tool in classical law, but its application to bitcoin is a highly contentious and potentially dangerous innovation. Without a court precedent, such an approach may be perceived as an attempt to legitimize claims to others’ funds under legal cover.

As reported by CryptoQuant, operations with “dormant” coins have become systemic: since 2023, the average monthly volume of transactions with “old” bitcoins has increased from 4,900 BTC to 30,700 BTC.