US Government Has Bitcoin: Glassnode Data Worth $6 Billion
The US government is one of the most significant Bitcoin (BTC) holders in the world, with 205,514 BTC – worth $6 billion – according to Glassnode data.
Reflexivity Research co-founder Will Clemente noted that the US government bought its BTC through seizure.
For context, the US Department of Justice seized $3.6 billion in Bitcoin linked to the 2016 Bitfinex hack last year. Before that, the government took 70,000 BTC from Ross Ulbricht when it brought down the Silk Road.
The US government’s significant BTC holdings puts it ahead of whales like MicroStrategy – which has spent over $4 billion to buy 140,000 units of its flagship digital asset.
Meanwhile, have largest BTC holder is the pseudonymous creator of the blockchain network, Satoshi Nakamoto, with 1 million BTC. Greyscale Bitcoin Trust follows him with 650,000 BTC. Others on the list include exchanges such as Binance, Coinbase and Bitfinex.
What would the US government do with its BTC?
Judging by its precedence, the US government is likely to sell the digital assets in the next few years.
In March, the US government filed a note in the Southern District of New York and showed that it sold 9,861.17 BTC for $215.5 million. The memo revealed that the BTC sold was part of the assets it seized from the Silk Road marketplace.
The court filing further suggested that the government would still sell more BTC before the end of the year. Earlier this week, rumors emerged that the government was selling some of these assets.
Meanwhile, many industry players have criticized the government’s penchant for selling, pointing out that it could have made more money by holding. For example, the US government sold 29,657 Bitcoins for around $18 million in 2014. Today, that same asset would be worth nearly $900 million.
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