The post Why Over 913,000 Ethereum(ETH) Is Lost Forever? appeared first on Coinpedia Fintech News
Unlike traditional finance, where banks can reverse mistaken transactions, crypto offers no such safety net. In the decentralized world of Ethereum, once a transaction is confirmed on the blockchain, it is permanent and irreversible.
How Much Ethereum Has Been Lost?According to Conor Grogan, Director at Coinbase, over 913,111 ETH—worth approximately $3.4 billion at current prices—has been permanently lost due to human and technical errors. This staggering figure represents around 0.76% of Ethereum’s total circulating supply, currently standing at 120.7 million ETH.
Based on my research, a minimum of 913,111 Ethereum is lost forever due to user error. This is 0.76%+ of ETH supply, or $3.43 billion in lost funds
If we include EIP‑1559 burned ETH (5.3M), then >5% of all ETH ever made ($23.42B) have been permanently destroyed pic.twitter.com/IlTduN7Kzx
A significant amount of Ethereum has been lost due to three main reasons.
No. Due to Ethereum’s immutable blockchain design, once ETH is sent to an invalid or inaccessible address, it cannot be retrieved. There is no central authority to reverse or recover funds.
Grogan believes the actual number of lost Ethereum may be much higher than $3.4 billion, as many incidents go unreported or unnoticed.
.article_register_shortcode { padding: 18px 24px; border-radius: 8px; display: flex; align-items: center; margin: 6px 0 22px; border: 1px solid #0052CC4D; background: linear-gradient(90deg, rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.1) 0%, rgba(0, 82, 204, 0.1) 100%); } .article_register_shortcode .media-body h5 { color: #000000; font-weight: 600; font-size: 20px; line-height: 22px; text-align:left; } .article_register_shortcode .media-body h5 span { color: #0052CC; } .article_register_shortcode .media-body p { font-weight: 400; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; color: #171717B2; margin-top: 4px; text-align:left; } .article_register_shortcode .media-body{ padding-right: 14px; } .article_register_shortcode .media-button a { float: right; } .article_register_shortcode .primary-button img{ vertical-align: middle; width: 20px; margin: 0; display: inline-block; } @media (min-width: 581px) and (max-width: 991px) { .article_register_shortcode .media-body p { margin-bottom: 0; } } @media (max-width: 580px) { .article_register_shortcode { display: block; padding: 20px; } .article_register_shortcode img { max-width: 50px; } .article_register_shortcode .media-body h5 { font-size: 16px; } .article_register_shortcode .media-body { margin-left: 0px; } .article_register_shortcode .media-body p { font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; margin-top: 6px; margin-bottom: 14px; } .article_register_shortcode .media-button a { float: unset; } .article_register_shortcode .secondary-button { margin-bottom: 0; } } Never Miss a Beat in the Crypto World!Stay ahead with breaking news, expert analysis, and real-time updates on the latest trends in Bitcoin, altcoins, DeFi, NFTs, and more.
.subscription-options li { display: none; } .research-report-subscribe{ background-color: #0052CC; padding: 12px 20px; border-radius: 8px; color: #fff; font-weight: 500; font-size: 14px; width: 96%; } .research-report-subscribe img{ vertical-align: sub; margin-right: 2px; }Ethereum is lost primarily due to transfers to wrong or unrecoverable addresses, vulnerabilities and coding errors in smart contracts, and failures or misconfigurations of multisig wallets.
Can permanently lost Ethereum be recovered?No, due to Ethereum’s immutable blockchain design, once ETH is sent to an invalid or inaccessible address, it is permanent and cannot be reversed or recovered by any central authority.