How to claim your XBT and sell it for bitcoin (safely)

If you held bitcoin before August 8, 2026 (block 961,632), you also hold the same amount of XBT. Same addresses, same keys. Nothing needs to be "claimed" from anyone: the coins are already yours. To sell them you only need to do two things in the right order: protect your BTC first, then move the XBT to an exchange and sell it for BTC.

Step 1: Move your BTC to a fresh wallet, in a way that can't be replayed

A normal bitcoin transaction from your old wallet is also valid on XBT, so someone could copy it to the XBT chain (a "replay"). The cleanest fix: include one coin in the transaction that only exists on Bitcoin. A transaction with even one input that doesn't exist on XBT is invalid there, so it can't be replayed.

1. Make a brand-new BTC wallet with a new seed (a new hardware wallet account, or a new Sparrow wallet). This is where your bitcoin will live from now on.
2. Get a small "post-fork" coin. Withdraw about $20 of BTC from any exchange to your old wallet. That coin was created after the split, so it only exists on Bitcoin.
3. Send everything from the old wallet to the new one in one transaction. In Sparrow, use coin control (the UTXOs tab), select all your old coins plus the new $20 coin, and send the full amount to an address in your new wallet.
4. Wait for it to confirm on Bitcoin. Your BTC is now split and safe, under keys that have never touched XBT software.

Prefer to do it the other way round? Our replay protection explainer covers spending the XBT side first with a wallet that signs with SIGHASH_UNIFIED.

Step 2: Check your XBT is still there

Paste one of your old addresses into an XBT block explorer. The balance you had at block 961,632 should still be sitting there on XBT, untouched. Pre-fork coins are not affected by the 45-day lock, which only applies to newly mined coins.

Step 3: Open the old wallet on the XBT chain

1. Install Shrike (a Sparrow fork for XBT) and check the download's signature. Point it at an XBT Electrum server, ideally your own node.
2. Connect the hardware wallet that held your old coins, or, since that seed no longer guards any bitcoin, restore the old seed in Shrike. Treat that old seed as XBT-only from now on.
3. Shrike will show your XBT balance. It still says "BTC" in places; it's XBT.

Step 4: Deposit to an exchange that lists XBT

Two exchanges list XBT today, both without ID checks at the time of writing:

• NeoxEX: XBT/BTC (the deepest pair), XBT/USDC and XBT/USDT
• NonKYC: BTCB2/USDT

Get your XBT deposit address from the exchange, send a small test amount first, and wait for it to be credited. Then send the rest. Check the exchange's deposit page for how many confirmations it needs.

Step 5: Sell carefully. The order books are thin

This is the step most people get wrong. XBT trades around $2 million a day across all venues, which is tiny next to bitcoin. A single large market order will eat through every bid in the book and fill at terrible prices.

• Use limit orders, placed at or just above the best bid. Never market-sell size.
• Look at the order book first. Add up how much is bid within 5% of the price. Don't sell more than a fraction of that at once.
• Sell in pieces over hours or days. Larger holders should plan on spreading sales out.
• Sell straight into BTC on the XBT/BTC pair if bitcoin is what you want. It skips the stablecoin step and has the most volume.

Live prices, bid and ask on every venue and 24-hour volume are on the xbt.live homepage under Exchanges.

Step 6: Withdraw your BTC

Don't leave coins on an exchange. Withdraw the bitcoin to the new wallet from Step 1, test amount first.

Before you sell

• Taxes: selling fork coins can be taxable where you live. See our XBT tax notes and talk to a professional.
• You don't have to sell everything. Some holders sell part and keep part. Your call.
• Keep it offline if you hold: our cold storage guide builds a $60 XBT signing device.

For education only. Not financial, tax or security advice. Community wallets are unaudited; test every step with a small amount first. Exchange links may earn xbt.live a commission at no cost to you.