The US government just transferred $2 billion worth of bitcoin. This comes two days after former President Donald Trump promised that under his administration, the country would never sell its BTC.
US government moves some of its bitcoins
According to data from Arkham Intelligence, 29,800 BTC was withdrawn from a government wallet that holds bitcoins confiscated from Silk Road. The funds were sent to an unmarked blockchain address. It is therefore unclear whether the authorities are preparing to sell the cryptocurrencies or have simply transferred the coins as part of some security procedure.
However, everything took place at a special moment – two days after Donald Trump promised during the Bitcoin 2024 conference that if he won the presidential election, the US authorities would not sell “their” bitcoins.
What’s more, the more than 200,000 BTC that the US holds would become the basis for the Fed’s new reserve. However, Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis has already given this message, also for Bitcoin 2024. She has proposed a plan to buy 5% of the total supply of bitcoin, or 1 million BTC.
Cryptocurrency experts comment on bitcoin transfer
How do experts react to the transfer of funds on Silk Road? Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz harshly criticized the move:
Moving BTC (after) Silk Road two days after Trump promised not to move them is just stupid!!!
But is this just malice? Doubtful. Some suggest the transfer may be connected to a July 1 agreement between the US Marshalls Service and cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase.
The US government currently has $12 billion in bitcoins, with the vast majority of that amount coming from various seizures. The funds were seized from criminals.
A separate issue is whether adding bitcoins to the reserve is realistic. The idea is – due to the high volatility of the BTC exchange rate – bold. And because of that, many officials and politicians will probably stand in the way of its implementation. Besides, the first condition is for Trump to win the election. As the latest polls show, the Republican is losing to Kamala Harris in key states.
