Coinspeaker
US Government Transfers $4M Bitcoin to Coinbase, Arkham Data Reveals
The United States government reportedly moved approximately $4 million worth of Bitcoin (BTC) to Coinbase. That is according to a recent report by data blockchain analytics firm Arkham Intelligence. Arkham claims that the transfer of 58.742 BTC came up from an address named US Government: Ryan Farace and identified onchain as 3B2j…iGfFtaU.
As the image above suggests, it is believed that the funds in question were the same as those seized from Ryan Farace some three years ago. In November 2018, Ryan was convicted in the US District Court for Maryland, for dealing drugs online. He operated under the pseudonym Xanaxman and sold Xanax pills on the dark web.
Ryan’s father, Joseph Farace, was also convicted for laundering and trafficking Bitcoin proceeds that the federal government sought to seize. While both father and son were only sentenced in early January of this year, the Department of Justice eventually recovered 2,933 BTC from the duo.
As a fact, after handing out their sentences, the government also announced plans to liquidate holdings. Therefore, the latest movement of funds may just be in line with those liquidation plans. Or, it could be that the government is just readying for a potential transfer to a different digital wallet.
Whatever might be the case, the specific destination of the funds remains unclear, as of publication.
BTC Price Unfazed
The movement of funds, though it has left the Ryan Farace account empty, has had no real impact on the spot price of BTC. That is because the amount moved represents less than 1% of Bitcoin’s 24-hour trading volume of over $43 billion. So, unlike the recent large sale of BTC by Germany, which drove BTC price to as low as $53,500 at one point, the United States’ potential liquidation of funds through Coinbase is not likely to strain the BTC price to a large extent.
Meanwhile, it might also be worth mentioning that the US government has been amassing a notable amount of Bitcoin lately. That is, through various legal proceedings, including the seizure of assets from darknet marketplaces and other illicit activities. Presently, the US government still holds over 213,000 BTC worth over $14 billion in total. As of writing, Bitcoin was seen trading at $66,533.
US Government Transfers $4M Bitcoin to Coinbase, Arkham Data Reveals
