Tenerife’s governing physique is in talks over the $10 million sale of 97 bitcoins (BTC) that the island’s Institute of Know-how and Renewable Energies (ITER) purchased in 2012 for simply €10,000.
El Dia reported yesterday that Juan José Martínez, a councillor on the Tenerife Island Council who helps oversee ITER — identified for its work in renewable vitality, telecommunications, and environmental analysis — revealed the division is in dialogue with a Spanish monetary establishment to purchase the BTC.
The council has reportedly tried to promote the crypto earlier than, however has been unsuccessful resulting from a variety of regulatory hurdles and a concern of the asset’s excessive volatility.
Regardless, Martínez hopes {that a} sale can be finalized within the subsequent few months.
The potential purchaser hasn’t been formally revealed, nonetheless, it’s an institute licensed by each the Financial institution of Spain and the Nationwide Securities Market Fee.
Tenerife’s €10K BTC buy was for analysis
ITER initially purchased the BTC 13 years in the past as a part of a analysis mission trying into the mechanics of the asset and the blockchain expertise it’s constructed upon.
Blockworks researcher Fernando Molina, nonetheless, notes that the ITER misplaced entry to the pockets for eight years earlier than on the lookout for a purchaser. Because it was purchased, its worth has elevated 1,000x.
Martínez harassed that it wasn’t a monetary funding. “It was one of the many investigations carried out by ITER to understand different technological systems and experiment with them,” he stated.
He added that “the logical thing to do is to try to sell them now that they have appreciated so much and invest them in ITER’s own projects.”
The ITER’s BTC buy was additionally criticized by the Tenerife Island Council’s earlier president, Pedro Martín, over the “opaque” nature of crypto.
Protos has reached out to ITER for touch upon the story and can replace this piece ought to we hear something again.
