The United States Government Is Now One Of The Largest Bitcoin Holders In The World

JAKARTA - The United States government has become one of the largest Bitcoin holders, with ownership of more than 200,000 BTC worth more than $5 billion, although they have sold several thousand BTC worth millions of dollars earlier this year.

Based on data analysis based on public reports, the crypto company 21.co estimates that the United States government still has 194.188 BTC, which is estimated to be worth 5.3 billion US dollars (Rp83.2 trillion). The company noted in its analysis that this is "the lowest estimate of US government ownership based on publicly available information."

This analysis tracks the movement of Bitcoin in the United States government wallet associated with the three largest BTC seizures since 2020, namely the confiscation of Silk Road as much as 69,369 BTC in November 2020, the seizure of Bitfinex Hack as much as 94,643 BTC in January 2022, and the confiscation of James Zhong as many as 51,326 BTC in March 2022.

The confiscated assets did not immediately become government property. US Marshals Service, the main institution in charge of selling confiscated property, only received Bitcoin ownership which was confiscated after the court issued a definitive or legally binding verdict.

The United States government also sold part of Bitcoin confiscated over time through an auction system based on a court order. The most striking government auction took place in 2014, when billionaire Tim Draper bought 30,000 BTC from a US government auction.

However, in recent years, the United States government has turned to crypto exchanges to sell Bitcoins confiscated through public auctions. One such sale came in March this year when the government sold 9,118 BTC in Coinbase, as confirmed in a public report.