Seized Silk Road Bitcoin Moved to Coinbase Prime by US Government

Tatevik Avetisyan
By Tatevik Avetisyan 3 Min Read
Seized Silk Road Bitcoin Moved to Coinbase Prime by US Government

YEREVAN (CoinChapter.com) — On Wednesday, the US government transferred 10,000 bitcoin (BTC) seized from the Silk Road case, valued at approximately $600 million, to Coinbase Prime. Arkham Intelligence, a blockchain analysis firm, identified the transfer. The crypto wallet involved had received the bitcoin two weeks earlier from a wallet tagged as “U.S. Government: Silk Road DOJ Confiscated Funds.”

Silk Road Bitcoin Transfer to Coinbase Prime"Source: Arkham Intelligence
Silk Road Bitcoin Transfer to Coinbase Prime. Source: Arkham Intelligence

DOJ’s $3.36B Silk Road BTC Seizure and 2023 Asset Sales Overview

In 2022, the Department of Justice (DOJ) seized over 50,000 BTC after arresting James Zhong, who pleaded guilty to wire fraud. Zhong was accused of exploiting Silk Road’s transaction system in 2012.

- Advertisement -
Historic $3.36B Silk Road Bitcoin Seizure by U.S. DOJ"Source: U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New York
Historic $3.36B Silk Road Bitcoin Seizure by U.S. DOJ. Source: U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New York

The government last sold seized Silk Road-linked bitcoin in March 2023, unloading 9,861 BTC for $216 million, according to court records. Plans were made to sell the remaining assets in four tranches, but there have been no updates since. Ascend to Cryptocurrency trading excellence with https://bitcoin-synergy.app/.

Government’s $12B BTC Stash and Market Response

Bitcoin’s price dropped to $59,000 from $61,000 earlier on Wednesday, though this occurred before news of the transfer emerged. The price change suggests uncertainty about the market’s response. Wallets linked to the U.S. government currently hold around $12 billion worth of BTC, along with smaller amounts of other cryptocurrencies, as per Arkham Intelligence.

U.S. Government's $12.24 Billion Crypto Holdings Breakdown"Source: Arkham Intelligence
U.S. Government’s $12.24 Billion Crypto Holdings Breakdown. Source: Arkham Intelligence

At the moment of writing, Bitcoin (BTC) is priced at $58,310.65, reflecting a 1.83% increase over the past 7 days. The cryptocurrency’s market capitalization stands at approximately $1.15 trillion, having decreased by 4.26%. The 24-hour trading volume has surged by 14.57% to reach $32.92 billion. Currently, the volume-to-market cap ratio is 2.86%. The circulating supply of Bitcoin is 19,739,978 BTC, which represents 94.00% of its maximum supply of 21 million BTC.

- Advertisement -
Bitcoin Holds Steady at $58.3K Amidst Market Volatility"Source: CoinMarketCap
Bitcoin Holds Steady at $58.3K Amidst Market Volatility. Source: CoinMarketCap

The U.S. Marshals Service, a division of the DOJ, partnered with Coinbase Prime last month to “safeguard and trade” large-cap digital assets. The details of what happens to the bitcoin after the transfer to Coinbase Prime remain unclear.

Tatevik Crypto Journalist CoinChapter

Tatevik Avetisyan

Tatev Avetisyan is a Markets Writer and Analyst at CoinChapter, covering cryptocurrency markets, policy, and regulation. With over seven years of experience in business and marketing development, she has spent the past two years specializing in digital assets and has authored more than 2,000 articles on crypto markets and regulatory developments.She contributes as a guest writer to leading industry publications and is a prominent Web3 advocate in Armenia through Web3Armenia. Her work reflects a broader focus on artificial intelligence and Web3 technologies. Tatev maintains a diversified crypto portfolio, with Bitcoin as her primary holding above CoinChapter’s $1,000 disclosure threshold.

2 Comments

2 responses to “Seized Silk Road Bitcoin Moved to Coinbase Prime by US Government”

  1. An intriguing discussion is definitely worth comment.
    I do think that you ought to publish more about this subject, it may not be a
    taboo matter but typically people don’t speak about these issues.
    To the next! Best wishes!!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *