- The revised CLARITY Act prevents dormant self-custodied crypto from being treated as abandoned property due to inactivity alone.
- Alex Thorn said the new protections would shield dormant wallets, including Satoshi Nakamoto’s Bitcoin, from state property claims.
- The bill reinforces self-custody rights and overrides conflicting state laws targeting inactive private crypto wallets.
The updated CLARITY Act includes language that would prevent lawfully self-custodied digital assets from being treated as abandoned property because of inactivity. Galaxy Head of Firmwide Research Alex Thorn highlighted the provision, noting it would protect dormant wallets, including Bitcoin linked to Satoshi Nakamoto, from forfeiture or state property claims based only on onchain dormancy.
Alex Thorn Points To New Self-Custody Language
According to Alex Thorn, many observers overlooked the new section added to the CLARITY Act. He said the measure blocks self-custodied coins from being classified as “lost” under abandoned property laws because of inactivity.
The legislation states that lawfully self-custodied digital assets cannot become abandoned, unclaimed, forfeited, or subject to similar property claims. It also prevents federal, state, or local authorities from relying solely on inactivity or dormancy to make those claims.
Notably, the updated bill also preserves the right to use hardware or software wallets without relying on an intermediary. In addition, the federal provisions would override conflicting state abandoned property laws targeting inactive private wallets.
Galaxy Connects Provision To Noah Doe Case
Galaxy tied the updated language to a legal dispute involving pseudonymous plaintiff Noah Doe. In October 2025, Galaxy Research examined a campaign targeting dormant Bitcoin addresses through OP_RETURN messages.
The firm said its earlier report suggested the messages aimed to build evidence before attempting to claim dormant Bitcoin as abandoned property. Galaxy now says that assessment matched a lawsuit filed in New York during March 2026.
According to the report, Noah Doe and two unnamed Wyoming LLCs seek legal title to more than 39,000 dormant Bitcoin addresses. The filing also includes thousands of addresses associated with Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto.
Updated Bill Addresses Dormant Wallet Concerns
Alex Thorn stated that the revised CLARITY Act would protect Satoshi’s Bitcoin from abandoned property claims. The bill keeps the Keep Your Coins Act provisions while affirming self-custody rights and limiting state efforts to classify inactive wallets as abandoned property.
According to Galaxy Research, the proposed protections directly address concerns raised by the Noah Doe litigation. The firm said the legislation would stop inactivity alone from becoming the legal basis for claiming ownership of self-custodied digital assets.
