The recent sale of 9800 Bitcoin (BTC) by the United States government, amounting to $277 million, has raised eyebrows within the crypto community. The sudden influx of such a large amount of BTC into the market resulted in the coin’s value decreasing, as it currently trades at $27,687.83 with a marginal gain of 0.84%. Prior to the sale, the digital currency’s price had surged past $28,000. Analysts suggest that if the US government decides to sell off more of its holdings – currently totaling over 200,000 BTC – the price could plummet further, possibly dropping below $10,000.
Understandably, this has caused mixed emotions among crypto enthusiasts, particularly those who hold significant amounts of the coin. Surprisingly, several responses suggest that Bitcoin sales of this nature might be a welcome development. Despite recent price fluctuations, BTC maintains a bullish stance and medium levels of volatility.
This marks the second time the US government has sold 9800 BTC, with both instances resulting from the seizure of cryptocurrencies in criminal operations. In November 2022, about 50,000 BTC were confiscated from crypto criminal James Zhong. Furthermore, in 2014, the federal government sold off 30,000 BTC obtained from the same source.
The American cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase was used as the platform to facilitate the sale both in 2014 and recently. Moreover, in March, it was reported that around 40,000 BTC linked to the US government were on the move, with a significant portion being transferred internally and the remainder on Coinbase. At that time, Glassnode noted that “approximately 9,861 $BTC seized from the Silk Road hacker have been sent to our Coinbase cluster.”
While the prospect of the US government continuing to sell off its confiscated BTC holdings raises concerns for some, others argue that it may eventually stabilize the market. Ultimately, the impact of such large-scale sales remains to be seen, and as always, conducting thorough market research is essential before investing in any cryptocurrency. The actions of the US government, as well as other potential influencers, should be monitored closely by both seasoned traders and newcomers to the crypto world.
Source: Coingape
