Investors and traders everywhere paid attention when CryptoQuant’s analysis confirmed that the United States government had sold 8,200 BTC connected to the darknet marketplace Silk Road. This amount was slightly smaller than previous estimates, demonstrating the careful approach the government took in their liquidation process. What’s more, the report revealed that 9,326 BTC had been moved in one transaction, further elucidating the scale and influence of the government’s involvement in the Bitcoin market. Output from the transaction was further sent to separate addresses, and finally transferred to exchanges or recombined into fewer wallets.
Allegedly, one address containing 1,119 BTC is now back in the government’s possession–unofficial as this claim is, it still speaks volumes about the measures taken to secure the government’s assets. Believe it or not, even after this sale, the report points out that the US still has a current portfolio of 195,307 BTC associated with various different criminal incidents, including the infamous Bitfinex hack. This demonstrates just how in-depth and impactful the government’s involvement in the cryptocurrency space is.
