tl;dr
The U.S. Department of Justice has initiated the movement of its substantial Bitcoin holdings, worth $2 billion, to a Coinbase wallet, with the majority of the funds remaining unspent. This action follows the government's previous announcement to sell 2,933 BTC, allowing a window for non-defendants ...
The U.S. Department of Justice has initiated the movement of its substantial Bitcoin holdings, worth $2 billion, to a Coinbase wallet, with the majority of the funds remaining unspent. This action follows the government's previous announcement to sell 2,933 BTC, allowing a window for non-defendants to stake a claim. Furthermore, authorities had previously seized $3.36 billion in BTC from hacker James Zhong, linked to the illegal Silk Road marketplace. These movements are closely monitored by the cryptocurrency community, as they can impact the market's price due to expectations of potential large-scale sales.
The feds are moving their Bitcoin stash again. Blockchain data shows that on Tuesday morning, a wallet tagged as belonging to the United States Department of Justice started moving some of the $2 billion worth of held BTC to an address believed to be crypto exchange Coinbase. Pseudonymous blockchain analyst ZachXBT said on Twitter that the funds were moved to a Coinbase deposit address. A small test transaction of 0.001 BTC (about $69) was sent before approximately 2,000 BTC ($131.27 million) followed. Arkham Intelligence, which tracks blockchain data, has a U.S. government-labeled address on its platform. It shows that the funds were moved to Coinbase Prime. The majority of the $2 billion in Bitcoin remains "unspent" as of this writing according to transaction data, however.
The feds hold Bitcoin that’s been seized from criminals and sometimes move it around. Sometimes they intend to sell it. In January, the government announced plans to sell 2,933 BTC — about $133.5 million at the time of listing — but said it would provide 60 days for non-defendants to file a petition to claim an interest in the cryptocurrency. Tuesday's movements may be tied to that expected sale. Back in November 2021, authorities seized $3.36 billion worth of BTC after hacker James Zhong confessed to stealing digital assets from the illegal Silk Road marketplace—where people could use crypto to buy drugs and other illicit goods.
Bitcoiners tend to keep an eye on big and well-known BTC holders when they move large amounts of funds. Previous movements—or even suspected movements—have sent the price of Bitcoin downwards because observers expect it to be sold.
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