A Spanish research institute is about to cash in on a forgotten $10,000 Bitcoin purchase from 2012, which has increased by a factor of 1,000 to $10 million
The Institute of Technology and Renewable Energies (ITER), run by the Island Council of Tenerife, acquired 97 BTC over a decade ago as part of a blockchain research project. A report by the Spanish-language newspaper.
Tenerife’s innovation council member Juan José Martínez said the council is now finalizing plans for the sale with an approved Spanish financial institution. Proceeds will fund new ITER research, including work in quantum technologies.
Research Institute’s Bitcoin Stash Skyrockets 100,000%
The price of Bitcoin has soared since 2012, allowing the institute to increase its investment by 100,000%.
In early October, when Bitcoin’s price hit a new all-time high (ATH) around $126,198, the supply was worth more than $12.2 million.
The Institute’s Bitcoin purchase was not an investment
Martínez told the news outlet that the 2012 purchase was never intended as an investment, but rather as part of an experimental project aimed at understanding Bitcoin’s underlying blockchain technology.
More specifically, a computer team from ITER investigated how the Bitcoin mining process works.
“It was one of many research projects that ITER has undertaken to explore and experiment with new technological systems,” Martínez said.
ITER is currently working with a Spanish financial institution authorized by the Bank of Spain and the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV) to facilitate the sale of Bitcoin.
Martinez said he expects the transaction to close in the coming months.
Major US academic institutions are investing in Bitcoin
While ITER has said its purchase of Bitcoin was not intended as an investment, other major academic institutions have begun investing in the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization.
Harvard Management Company, which oversees the university’s $50 billion endowment, disclosed a $116 million position in BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) in one of its recent publications. quarterly returns with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Did you know?
Harvard University’s portfolio contains more Bitcoin ETFs than Google stock. pic.twitter.com/iiPWbEr2Cq
— Bitinning (@bitinning) September 19, 2025
The investment gives Harvard indirect exposure to Bitcoin price movements through BlackRock’s regulated spot BTC ETF (exchange-traded fund). It is also one of the university’s five largest publicly disclosed stock holdings, behind Microsoft, Amazon, Booking Holdings and Meta.
Harvard’s investment came after US spot Bitcoin ETFs were given the green light to launch in 2024. Since then, they have attracted billions of dollars in investment and provide traditional investors with a trusted tool to gain BTC exposure.
Of these ETFs, BlackRock’s IBIT is the most popular, attracting cumulative inflows of $63.34 billion to date, according to data from Farside Investors.
US Spot Bitcoin ETF Flows (Source: Farside Investors)
Brown University also reported that it owned approximately $4.19 million worth of IBIT stock as of mid-year. Earlier this year, the University of Austin in Texas announced a special $5 million “bitcoin fund” within his endowment. The proceeds are kept in BTC for at least five years.
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