The United States Government has reportedly transferred a massive amount of Bitcoin, up to the tune of $240 million to the popular cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase. This staggering transaction has caught the attention of the general community as it comes amid a period of global crypto market downtrend.
As market participants continue to hope for a possible price rally, BTC whale transactions are increasing daily with thousands of coins sent to various crypto exchanges. According to reports, the transaction which took place at 5:00 pm UTC involved seized Bitcoins from Banmeet Singh, a convicted drug trafficker and dark web vendor sentenced earlier this year.
US Govt Sends Over 3,940 BTC to Coinbase, Details
Arkham Intelligence, a blockchain platform that unveils whale transaction details, reported earlier today that the United States Government has moved 3,940 Bitcoins to Coinbase Prime Wallet. The transferred BTC was part of the coins forfeited at Singh’s trial in January 2024. At the time of his trial, Singh relinquished 8,100 BTC (valued at $150 million at the time).
Update: US Government Sends $240M BTC to Coinbase PrimeThe US Government just moved 3,940 BTC ($240M) to Coinbase Prime.This BTC was originally seized from narcotics trafficker Banmeet Singh, and forfeited at trial in January 2024.Transaction: https://t.co/hZ1CwqWCmF pic.twitter.com/9t6k8Wdizq
— Arkham (@ArkhamIntel) June 26, 2024
The United States DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency) described it as the largest seized cryptocurrency of all time. Notably, when transfers of this magnitude are sent to a centralized exchange, it is mostly looked at as a dump. This would mean that the US govt is getting ready to sell these assets in the open market.
Interestingly, this comes at a time when there are heightened concerns about the Bitcoin selling pressure. Recall that on June 25, the German government sent 400 BTC, worth $24.34 million, to Coinbase and Kraken. And before that, about 1,700 BTC (worth $110 million) were sent to Coinbase, Kraken, and the Luxembourg-based crypto exchange, Bitstamp.
Also, the defunct crypto exchange, Mt. Gox has announced that it will commence repayment to its creditors with Bitcoin (BTC), and Bitcoin Cash (BCH) in the first week of July. For this purpose, about 142,000 BTC has been allocated. When this much amount of Bitcoins is injected into the market, it can raise the market volatility and catalyze a downward trend.
According to Lookonchain, an analytical tool that offers insights into blockchain transactions, the US govt now holds exactly 213,546 (worth $13.07 billion) positioning it as the top Bitcoin holder globally, followed by China with 190,000 BTC, and the UK with 61,000 BTC. About 2.7% of the total Bitcoin in circulation is held by 11 governments globally including El Salvador and Germany.
Bitcoin (BTC) Price Movement
Bitcoin has suffered a significant price drop over the last month. According to data from CoinMarketCap, the price of BTC is currently at $61,192, representing a 0.31% drop in the last 24 hours.
Additionally, the 24-hour trading volume of BTC has declined by 17.52% to $21.5 billion. In hindsight, Bitcoin has plummeted by 7.79% in the last seven days and by a significant 10.56% in the last month. In the past 24 hours, Bitcoin has traded between the lows and highs of $60,606 and $61,923.
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