BTC Slips on News of U.S. Moving 3.940 Seized Silk Road Bitcoin to Coinbase – Is a Massive Sell-Off on the Horizon?

Clearing out the previous speculation highlighted in CNF about the US Government planning to sell $1.18 billion worth of Bitcoin (BTC) connected to Silk Roadand its effect to the market, according to updated data by Arkham Intelligence, the US Government has sent $240 million worth of BTC to Coinbase Prime. This BTC was originally seized from narcotics trafficker Banmeet Singh and forfeited at trial in January 2024.

In a tweet, Collin Brown shared updates on this transfer, indicating that Bitcoin tumbled as the U.S. moved $240 million in seized Silk Road BTC to Coinbase. Concerns are rising over a potential sell-off following the government’s transfer of 3,940 BTC. The market reacted nervously, causing BTC to dip below $61K.

#Bitcoin tumbles as U.S. moves $240M in seized Silk Road #BTC to Coinbase. Concerns rise over potential sell-off after government's transfer of 3,940 BTC, originally from trafficker Banmeet Singh. Market reacts nervously, BTC dips below $61K. pic.twitter.com/MC3QrMaL53

— Collin Brown (@CollinBrownXRP) June 27, 2024

Yahoo Finance highlighted that the US government has been actively seizing and moving Bitcoin related to the Silk Road. In late 2022, they seized approximately 50,000 Bitcoin, and the latest significant transfer occurred on April 2, 2024, when $2 billion worth of Bitcoin was moved, impacting the market price.

Impact on Bitcoin Price

The movement of seized Bitcoin by the US government has notably affected Bitcoin’s price. The latest transfer caused Bitcoin to drop to a low of $60,800. Even with attempts to recover from previous slumps, Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies like Ether experienced declines following the news.

Nevertheless, the impact of this new development seems to trigger a slight positive trend for the BTC price. According to the latest update from CoinMarketCap, Bitcoin (BTC) is priced at $61,329.52, showing a modest increase of 0.09% in the past day and a decrease of 6.69% in the past week. See the BTC price chart below.

Is a Massive Sell-Off on the Horizon?

Up until this stage, the market remains on edge, awaiting further developments regarding the potential sell-off of the seized Bitcoin.