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In 2009, A Norwegian Student Spent $27 On Bitcoin For A School Project And Forgot About It. Four Years Later, Kristoffer Koch Discovered The Wallet Was Worth $886,000. He Used 20% To Buy An Oslo Apartment. If He Still Holds The Rest, It’s Worth More Than $330 Million Today.

A Norwegian grad student bought Bitcoin in 2009 as a footnote to his thesis, forgot it existed, and stumbled back to find the wallet years later transformed by a price surge that made him face a decision most people will…

By AJ Tiarsmith
Published October 4, 2026, 9:52am ET · 2 min read

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A man in a light blue collared shirt and tie sits in a dark office chair, holding a white mug. He looks intently towards a large, glowing golden Bitcoin symbol positioned centrally within a dynamic, circular orange and blue circuit diagram. Binary code (0s and 1s) floats around the digital currency symbol and in the blue-toned background, creating a futuristic and technologically advanced atmosphere.
An investor observes the glowing Bitcoin symbol, embodying the digital revolution and the immense potential of early cryptocurrency investments. © Who is Danny / Shutterstock.com

In 2009, Kristoffer Koch was a Norwegian graduate student researching encryption for his master’s thesis. PBS NewsHour reports that he spent 150 Norwegian kroner on Bitcoin (CRYPTO:BTC). PBS NewsHour put that at about $27, using the exchange rate cited in its later coverage, which we have not checked independently. According to PBS NewsHour, the purchase got him 5,000 BTC, and then he forgot about it entirely.

A Forgotten Wallet Turns Up Worth $886,000, according to PBS NewsHour

PBS NewsHour reported on October 29, 2013 that, with Bitcoin’s price surge all over the news, Koch remembered the old wallet and found it was worth $886,000. The outlet called that a gain of more than 3,000,000% in four years, according to PBS NewsHour.

One Fifth Became a Home in Oslo

Per PBS NewsHour, Koch used one fifth of the holding, 1,000 BTC, to buy an apartment in Oslo.

Faced with a sudden windfall, Koch converted a minority into a home and left the rest untouched. That choice kept most of the holding.

What 4,000 Untouched Bitcoin Would Be Worth Today

That left 4,000 BTC, assuming none was sold later. Bitcoin was priced at $84,196.11 as of 18:41 UTC on October 2, 2026. At that price, an untouched holding of that size would be worth approximately $336.8 million. We calculated that figure by applying the current price to his documented holding. No source reported it.

No source shows Koch still holds any Bitcoin. More than a decade has passed since the find, and Koch may have sold some or all of it. The figure shows only what an untouched holding would be worth.

Bitcoin is also volatile, so the figure is accurate only as of that date. Recent swings show how much it can move:

  • 1 year: -29.75%
  • 5 years: 76%
  • 10 years: 13,786.73%

Why This Forgotten-Bitcoin Story Holds Up

This story has a named person, a documented thesis context, a dated news report, and a traceable purchase from an established outlet at the time, putting it on stronger ground than internet lore.

Inattention Kept What Attention Probably Would Have Sold

Koch’s outcome offers little to copy. He made a side purchase, forgot about it, and the asset rose dramatically while he wasn’t looking.

Forgetting protected Koch’s position in a way that paying attention very likely would have undone. That’s a remark about one man’s luck. What to watch: whether Koch ever shows what became of the remaining coins, and how Bitcoin’s swings move that hypothetical value.

Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.

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AJ Tiarsmith

AJ spent 10 years writing about financial markets at The Motley Fool. His coverage centers on technology stocks and the broader macroeconomic trends, from interest rates to geopolitics,  that shape where markets are headed next. AJ is drawn to the stories where big-picture economics and individual companies collide.

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