cryptoknowmics.com
The government of Finland has sold 1,889.1 Bitcoins (BTC) for approximately 46.5 million euros ($47.5 million), which were seized by customs officials during criminal investigations. The coins were seized in drug busts and had been legally forfeited to the state following court rulings.
Finland Sells Confiscated Bitcoins in a Bearish Market
According to a Bloomberg report from today, Finland sold its Bitcoin (BTC) stash for only 46.5 million euros ($47.5 million) during the summer where the same stake was valued at almost $130 million at the peak of the crypto boom last year. The sale was conducted via two crypto brokers which the agency said were selected via a competitive process in April. Finland's Customs acquired the Bitcoin in a large narcotics bust in 2016 which was worth less than €700,000 ($712,000 million) at the time. It still holds 90 Bitcoins awaiting a court ruling of forfeiture, and an undisclosed amount of other cryptocurrencies. While the US government was the first to sell confiscated Bitcoins at an auction in 2014, other countries also took up selling cryptocurrencies seized in criminal investigations. In April, Finland donated "tens of millions" of euros earned through selling confiscated Bitcoin to Ukraine.
"Thanks to the revenues from the sale of Finnish Customs' stolen Bitcoin, the government will donate tens of millions to help Ukraine," Finnish finance minister Annika Saarikko tweeted, adding that the measure was "acceptable and legitimate."