🚀🚀 Breaking News! The U.S. government has transferred a whopping $240 million worth of Bitcoin (BTC) to a Coinbase Prime address! 🚀🚀

This huge chunk of BTC, amounting to 3,940 coins, was originally seized from Silk Road vendor and narcotics dealer Banmeet Singh during his trial in January. 🚔

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has been busy seizing BTC from illicit activities. In 2021 alone, they nabbed over 50,000 BTC, valued at $3.4 billion, from the notorious Silk Road marketplace. They've been selling off these seized coins, with the most recent sale happening in April, when they transferred BTC valued at approximately $2 billion. 💰💰

But hold on, there's more! The U.S. government holds a massive amount of Bitcoin acquired through seizures and asset forfeitures. According to Lookonchain, the country possesses 213,546 BTC, valued at approximately $13.07 billion. 💸💸

Now, back to Singh. He was arrested in 2019 in London on drug distribution charges and extradited to the U.S. in 2023. He was accused of running a narcotics smuggling network from 2012 to 2017. As part of his judgment, Singh had to surrender over 8,100 BTC, valued at around $150 million at the time. This marked the largest cryptocurrency seizure by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA). 🚨🚨

The recent transfer had an immediate impact on the cryptocurrency market. Following the transaction, the total cryptocurrency market experienced a modest decline, with BTC prices dropping below $60,800. At the writing time, the asset is trading at around $61,000. 📉📉

Coinbase Prime, the platform used for this latest transaction, has become the preferred vehicle for government liquidations. However, Coinbase itself has faced regulatory scrutiny. Under the leadership of Gary Gensler, the SEC charged the exchange with operating an unregistered securities platform and acting as an unlicensed broker-dealer. Coinbase is contesting these allegations in court. ⚖️⚖️

Stay tuned for more updates! 🚀🚀