- Over the last couple of years, the U.S. government has become one of the largest whales of Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC/USD), with over 214,046 bitcoins at minimum.
- The Department of Justice (DOJ) seized around 50,676.17 bitcoins (roughly $1 billion at today’s prices) in November 2021 from a Bitcoin trader named James Zhong, who defrauded darknet marketplace Silk Road.
- The seizure is notable—it’s the third largest in cryptocurrency history by Crypto Briefing’s count—especially considering the amount of Bitcoin the U.S. government already has under control.
- In addition to the 50,676 bitcoins seized from Zhong, the U.S. government has acquired at least 163,370 bitcoins over the last two years, totaling 214,046 bitcoins, or about $4.43 billion, minimum.
- According to BitInfoCharts, only one bitcoin wallet, Binance’s cold storage wallet, contains 252,597 bitcoins, mostly belonging to Binance customers, not the exchange itself.
- The U.S. government generally liquidates its Bitcoin holdings through the U.S. Marshalls Service through public auctions. Most likely, the seized bitcoins by the DOJ will be similarly offered to the public.
- In November 2021, DOJ auctioned off $56 million worth of cryptocurrencies seized from a BitConnect promoter at the height of the bull market.
- It is yet to be seen if DOJ will wait for bitcoin prices to bounce back before liquidating. So far, it has restrained itself from liquidating the proceeds from the Individual X and Razzlekhan confiscations.
- The agency seized 69,370 bitcoins (worth $1.4 billion) from Individual X in 2020 and 94,000 bitcoins from Razzlekhan (worth $1.9 billion).
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