PeckShield shared a post on X that has sparked conversation in the crypto community. The post highlighted activity on a wallet connected to the United States government, stating that 237 Bitcoins worth $13.7 million had been transferred to a new address. Peckshield also shared a screenshot showing the transfer to prove the claims.
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Peckshield shared the post on the BTC transaction from a U.S. government wallet holding seized BTC to a new address. The Bitcoins transferred were valued at $13.7 million. U.S. law enforcement has yet to make a formal statement regarding the transaction.
The U.S. government transfers seized BTC
The United States government has reportedly made a series of BTC transactions in the last few months. The government is said to have begun these transactions after it acquired authority to act on seized BTC.
#PeckShieldAlert 237 $BTC (worth ~$13.7m) from a wallet related to US Government law enforcement seizures has been transferred to a new address bc1qvc…n257 pic.twitter.com/8sXFV7V9P5
— PeckShieldAlert (@PeckShieldAlert) July 4, 2024
The transactions have sparked market speculation from analysts who think that transferring BTC to exchanges could adversely affect Bitcoin’s value. Market observers noted that BTC declined in April after the U.S. government transferred BTC worth $2 billion.
On June 26th, the U.S. government reportedly transferred 3,940 Bitcoins valued at $243 million to Coinbase. Analysts such as Arkham Intelligence and Zachxbt tracked these transactions. They reported that the amounts had been seized from Banmeet Singh, a narcotics dealer. Singh had pleaded guilty on January 26th on trial charges of conspiracy to engage in money laundering and intent to distribute controlled substances.
It is understood that the U.S. government is in possession of over 210,00 BTC valued at $13.00 billion. The crypto community has expressed that the transfers are part of the U.S. law enforcement agency’s moves to reduce the crypto assets in its possession.
The U.S. and German governments make similar BTC transactions
Market analysts have stated that the U.S. government’s transfers, including the newly reported transaction by Peckshield, follow similar transactions by the German government.
Data from Arkham revealed that German authorities moved a total of 3,000 Bitcoin to various addresses. Several crypto exchanges were also reported to be included among these addresses.
On July 2nd, the German government reportedly sent approximately $17.6 million worth of BTC to its addresses on various exchanges. Data reveals that the government has sent over $300 million worth of BTC to multiple addresses.
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Crypto traders have stated they are keenly watching the transactions by the U.S. and German governments. They stated that such transfers would likely generate panic among traders, leading to sales that could greatly impact the market. According to Coinmarketcap, BTC is currently trading below $55,000 and has been on a downward trend amid current market liquidations.
Cryptopolitan reporting by Collins J. Okoth