Man Who Threw Away $1 Billion In Bitcoin Debunks Rumors, Here’s The Progress

James Howells, the British man who famously misplaced entry to eight,000 Bitcoin in a 2013 landfill accident, is setting the report straight. Taking to X (previously Twitter), Howells pushed again towards current social media claims that he has deserted his search. He firmly denied the rumors and revealed a brand new technique to reclaim his misplaced fortune, now price roughly $923 million. Though he’s now not looking for permission from his native council to look the landfill, he’s removed from accomplished. 

Howells Debunks Rumors, Plans To Flip His Misplaced $1 Billion In Bitcoin Into Ceiniog Coin

Within the submit shared on X, Howells confirmed he has not given up and slammed years of rejection from Newport Metropolis Council. For over a decade, he says he tried public proposals, authorized talks, mediation, and even supplied over $30 million to get better the drive buried within the landfill. “$1 billion they usually ignored all of it,” he wrote. With no response from the council, he has determined to cease ready.

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As a substitute of constant authorized fights or making extra affords, Howells introduced a brand new plan: to tokenize all the pockets of 8,000 BTC into a brand new cryptocurrency referred to as Ceiniog Coin (INI). Named after an historic Welsh coin, Ceiniog will act as a Layer 2 token constructed on Bitcoin, matching 1:1 with satoshis, the smallest unit of Bitcoin. He plans to create 800 billion INI tokens, every instantly linked to the 8,000 BTC sitting on the misplaced drive.

In response to Howells, Ceiniog will launch in late 2025, powered by Bitcoin’s OP_RETURN performance. It should combine with Web3 tasks like Stacks, Runes, and Ordinals. With the ICO deliberate later this yr, Howells hopes the coin’s market worth will finally match that of the misplaced BTC, making him a theoretical billionaire, simply 8.34% away from that purpose primarily based on present costs.

How He Misplaced The Bitcoin And What He’s Performed To Get It Again

The saga started in 2013, when James Howells, a British IT skilled, unintentionally threw out a tough drive that contained the keys to eight,000 BTC, now price practically a billion {dollars}. Realizing the error too late, Howells spent the subsequent 12 years attempting to get better it.

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He submitted detailed restoration proposals, together with environmental clean-up plans and AI-powered landfill scans. He even supplied to lift $75 million by promoting 21% of the Bitcoin’s worth to fund the excavation. His most up-to-date formal supply in July 2025, price between $33 million and $40 million, included a full buy of the landfill and a cleanup technique. Citing environmental dangers and insecurity within the end result, the Newport Metropolis Council rejected the plan.

Now, as an alternative of digging by landfill waste, Howells is constructing Ceiniog Coin as his means of reclaiming what he believes is rightfully his. He plans to debut the coin at a reduction, letting early supporters purchase in earlier than the coin reaches its full worth. Over time, he hopes the token’s worth will naturally rise to mirror the price of 8,000 Bitcoin.

Featured picture from Unsplash, chart from TradingView.com