The U.S. government has moved nearly $600 million in seized Bitcoin from Silk Road to a Coinbase wallet, according to Arkham Intelligence. The government has millions of dollars in Bitcoin in its possession from various seizures over the years, including from the Silk Road dark web marketplace.
The amount of Bitcoin moved was 10,000, all to a Coinbase Prime wallet. The US government moved nearly $2 billion worth of Bitcoin from Silk Road to another wallet in July 2024. The reasons behind the transaction are unknown, and analysts wonder if the government plans to sell or hold the BTC. In July, the US Marshals Service (USMS) awarded Coinbase Prime a contract to manage and dispose of its large cryptocurrency holdings. Therefore, it is possible that the US government is simply moving the seized assets to a new custody facility.
What was Silk Road and what is the US government doing with its Bitcoin?
Silk Road was finally shut down in 2013 after an FBI investigation, which alleged the site facilitated the illegal sale of narcotics, weapons and other illicit merchandise. The accused creator, Ulbricht, was convicted on charges of money laundering and running a criminal enterprise. U.S. officials have had possession of the Bitcoin stash since 2013, when an unknown party entrusted it. In 2020, the Justice Department sought civil forfeiture based on claims of wrongful ownership.
In addition, all eyes are now on what the US will do with its Bitcoin. The market has recently been struggling with The sales history of Germany of seized Bitcoin. That’s why many are calling on the US to hold onto the assets. One of them is US Senator Cynthia Lummis.
Lummis introduces legislation that aims to use Bitcoin as a means of payment strategic reserve assets by the United States. The plan would call for the Treasury to hold BTC as a reserve asset, similar to how it would hold gold or foreign currencies. Additionally, the move would allow Bitcoin to be sold to help combat the nation’s growing debt.
Bitcoin has currently fallen in price over the past 24 hours, trading at $59,090.80. However, over the past week, the asset has recovered from a recent nosedive, growing by 7.24% over the past seven days.