US Government Transfers A Whopping $2 Billion in Silk Road Bitcoins to Coinbase

The US government has reallocated a portion of its bitcoin reserves to Coinbase, as indicated by transaction activity monitored on a blockchain wallet known to be under US government control. The wallet’s origins trace back to the government’s confiscation of bitcoins from the Silk Road operation.

The reallocation doesn’t come as a real surprise. Arkham Intelligence already reported that the government initiated a test transaction, moving $65 worth of bitcoin to an address associated with Coinbase, aiming to verify the connection with its main account on the platform. Following the successful test, 2,000 bitcoins, valued at approximately $131 million, was transferred to the same Coinbase account. Earlier in the year, the government had disclosed intentions to auction off around $13 million worth of bitcoin, contingent upon authorization from the US District Court of Maryland.

As of now, the wallet, primarily filled from the Silk Road seizure, holds an estimated 30,000 bitcoins, with a market value close to $2 billion. However, this is not the entirety of the US government’s bitcoin holdings. Another wallet, filled with bitcoins seized from hackers, contains roughly 94,600 bitcoins, translating to a value exceeding $6 billion.

CryptoSlate goes more into detail regarding the transfers itself.

Bitcoins from the Silk Road

The Silk Road was an online black market, most notably used as a platform for selling illegal drugs. As a part of the dark web, it operated as a Tor-hidden service, enabling users to browse anonymously. The site launched in February 2011. In 2013, the FBI shut down the website and arrested Ross William Ulbricht, accusing him of being the mastermind behind the site, known by the online pseudonym ‘Dread Pirate Roberts’. Ulbricht was sentenced to life in prison in May 2015.

Silk Road primarily conducted transactions in bitcoin until its shutdown in 2013.