The US government, on Wednesday, sent seized 3,940 Bitcoins to a Coinbase prime wallet, according to blockchain data firm Arkham Intelligence.
The data revealed that the Bitcoins were assets seized from Banmeet Singh, a convicted drug trafficker, who pled guilty of money laundering, early this year. The Bitcoins transferred are worth $241 million at press time.
On-chain sleuth Lookonchain noted that the US government currently holds 213,546 BTC, worth around $13.07 billion.
Note that the US government wallets deposited 3,940 $BTC($241.22M) into #Coinbase Prime 5 minutes ago.
The US government currently holds 213,546 $BTC($13.07B). pic.twitter.com/CAc87E2xFa
— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) June 26, 2024
This is also confirmed by data website Bitcoin Treasuries. US government tops in Bitcoin holdings, followed by China and the UK, holding 190,000 BTC and 61,000 BTC respectively.
Collectively, 11 governments worldwide including Germany, El Salvador, hold Bitcoin, accounting for 2.7% of the total 21 million bitcoin supply.
The news comes hours after the German government moved seized 750 Bitcoins, of which 250 BTC was transferred to Bitstamp and Kraken.
According to Jameson Lopp, co-founder of Casa, the US government has seized and sold off at least 195,091 Bitcoins. This includes assets obtained from Silk Road auction, US Marshals announcement, and others.
Bitcoins Seized from Banmeet Singh’s Case
Dark web vendor Banmeet Singh was sentenced to five years in jail on 19 April, for selling drugs online. Per reports, customers paid with cryptocurrency for drugs ordered from Singh using the vendor sites.
Over time, the Singh drug organization laundered millions of dollars of drug proceeds into crypto accounts, worth approximately $150 million.
The US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) characterized the event as the largest cryptocurrency seizure ever performed.
However, according to the Columbus Dispatch, Singh was in custody for one week shy of five years. He also reportedly surrendered more than 4,000 units of cryptocurrency as part of his sentence.
The recent government sell-offs has spurred fears among the crypto community of a possible Bitcoin price decline. That said, BTC price struggled to maintain gains on Wednesday, following the US government sell-offs.
The world’s largest crypto tumbled 1.4% in the last 24 hours and is currently trading at $60,656 at the time of writing.