On Friday, June 28, the US Government reportedly made a significant move by transferring more Bitcoin (BTC). Recently, the government offloaded a whopping 2000 BTC reserve to exchanges, which spread FUD in the market. Hence, the recent move has also sparked speculations of an imminent Bitcoin dump on exchanges by the U.S. government.

U.S. Gov Shifts More Bitcoin

According to Arkham Intelligence, the U.S. government-associated address shifted 11.84 BTC, valued at approximately $726,000, to a new address Moreover, this seemingly minor transaction is speculated to be a preliminary test preceding a larger transfer. The funds within this wallet were seized from Estonian crypto entrepreneurs Sergei Potapenko and Ivan Turogin, who were implicated in a massive crypto fraud scheme.

The Estonian crypto entrepreneurs at the center of the U.S. government’s seized funds, Sergei Potapenko and Ivan Turogin, were involved in a massive fraud operation. They deceived investors by promising high returns through their crypto haimining operations and related ventures. The proceeds from their fraudulent activities were subsequently confiscated by authorities. This led to the current situation where the U.S. government holds their seized Bitcoin assets.

This recent activity follows another major transaction on June 26. At the time, the U.S. government allegedly moved 4,000 Bitcoin to Coinbase Prime. Moreover, this transfer coincided with a noticeable drop in Bitcoin’s price, which fell to $61,208. The transfer of nearly $240 million worth of Bitcoin to Coinbase Prime has stirred concerns within the crypto community.

In addition, it raised fears of an imminent selloff that could further depress Bitcoin prices. The timing of these transfers is notable as they align with market tensions and volatility. The U.S. government’s actions mirror those of the German government, which has been actively selling its Bitcoin holdings.

On the same day, the German authorities also transferred another 595 BTC to major cryptocurrency exchanges, continuing their selloff trend. Moreover, over the past few days, more than 2,000 BTC have been sold from an address associated with the German government, adding to the market’s unease.

FUD Around Government BTC Selloffs

On June 26, PeckShieldAlert reported that the “German Government” address recently moved 750 BTC, worth around $46 million. Of this, 595 BTC, valued at approximately $36.5 million, were distributed among major exchanges, with Bitstamp and Kraken each receiving 125 BTC. Flow Traders, a global trading firm, received the largest portion of 345 BTC.

Notably, Kraken appears to be a preferred exchange for these transfers, as it also received 200 BTC in a previous 400 BTC selloff. However, despite these substantial selloffs, Germany’s Bitcoin holdings remained robust. These holdings are now valued at $2.76 billion, including $1.1 billion in unrealized profit.

While some analysts have cited government sales as a contributing factor to recent market volatility, the overall impact remains uncertain due to other influential market forces. Amid these concerns, CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju has sought to alleviate fears regarding the U.S. government’s Bitcoin sale.

Additionally, he emphasized that the recent 4,000 BTC sale is unlikely to impact the market significantly. Ju noted that Coinbase Prime has the capacity to handle substantial liquidity, managing between 20,000 and 49,000 BTC during periods of high spot ETF inflows. In addition, even during low Bitcoin ETF inflows, the exchange handles liquidity at 6,000 to 15,000 BTC.

Furthermore, Ju expressed frustration over recurring “government selling” fears and assured that the sale should not cause major concern among market participants. In addition to government actions, other market players, such as Bitcoin miners and dormant whales, have also continued to offload their holdings. Today, a dormant Bitcoin whale transferred $61.5 million worth of BTC to Binance. This sparked speculations about a potential selloff and added to the market’s existing anxieties.

The post U.S. Government Transfers More Bitcoin, Further BTC Selloff Imminent? appeared first on CoinGape.

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Filed under: News - @ June 28, 2024 3:20 pm