U.Today – Seized by the U.S. Government from an illegal anonymous online marketplace, Silk Road is back in business. Approximately 4,000 BTC was transferred to Coinbase (NASDAQ:) prime from a government-owned wallet.
Currently, the US government holds 213,546 Bitcoins, which is approximately $13 billion. Even though it’s a petite portion of their total holdings, this latest transfer is nonetheless significant.
Switching to Coinbase Prime, an exchange often used by institutional investors, increases the possibility of plans to sell some of these assets. Primarily known for selling illegal drugs, the Silk Road was the first current darknet market and online black market.
Under the pseudonym Dread Pirate Ross, Ulbricht introduced it in February 2011. In October 2013, the FBI shut down the website and Ulbricht was arrested and sentenced to life in prison.
In recent months, other governments have also been selling their Bitcoin holdings. For example, the German government sold a significant portion of its Bitcoin holdings worth $2 billion. Governments are selling off seized cryptocurrencies to reduce market volatility or leverage current values.
This sale is part of a broader trend in this area. Such a significant Bitcoin move could have a major impact on the market. Large transfers can sometimes escalate volatility, especially when linked to government wallets.
Unfortunately, during a period of high market volatility where Bitcoin is struggling to stay above $60,000, large sell-offs are coming. However, the exact reasons for this transfer are not known to the public. Typically, the money collected from the sale is used to finance various government initiatives or returned to people who have suffered from crimes involving seized property.
