$BTC Lost Bitcoin: Lost Keys and Erroneous Transfers

It is difficult to give an exact figure, but it is estimated that between 17% and 23% of all mined Bitcoin is permanently lost or inaccessible. This is mainly due to lost private keys, forgotten passwords, or the death of owners without a succession plan. In total, this could represent between 2.3 and 3.7 million BTC that are locked in the blockchain.

The loss from transfers to incorrect networks is even harder to quantify. This happens when Bitcoin is sent to an address on an incompatible blockchain network. The recoverability of these funds depends on the compatibility of the involved networks: in EVM-compatible networks, recovery is sometimes possible, but between incompatible networks, it is almost impossible. It is crucial to always verify the address and the network before sending cryptocurrencies to avoid these losses. The Bitcoin lost for these reasons reduces the circulating supply, contributing to its scarcity.