Key Points
- The US government’s Bitcoin holdings have reached a total of 216.788, worth around $13.83 billion.
- The increase is largely due to recent seizures of assets from individuals involved in illegal activities.
The US government’s holdings of Bitcoin (BTC) have grown to a total of 216.788, which is approximately $13.83 billion in value. According to Arkham, a blockchain intelligence firm, this increase is largely due to recent events, especially the seizure of assets from Banmeet Singh, an Indian national involved in illegal activities on the dark web.
Singh, who admitted to drug distribution charges in January, forfeited about $150 million from his illicit operations. Furthermore, authorities seized 3940 BTC owned by Singh, which are currently valued at around $250 million.
US Bitcoin Seizures
The recent seizure has significantly contributed to the government’s Bitcoin reserves, which now total $13.8 billion. Arkham suggests that a large portion of these assets may have been acquired through criminal seizures.
Before this recent addition, the US government’s Bitcoin holdings were approximately $8 billion. As of October 2023, the country had around $5.3 billion worth of Bitcoin.
According to separate data from blockchain analytics firm Dune, the government has seized about 200,000 tokens from cybercriminals since 2020.
The top three Bitcoin seizures in the country from November 2020 until now include the infamous Silk Road seizures totaling 69,369 BTC, the January 2022 Bitfinex Hack Seizure of 94,643 BTC, and the March 2022 James Zhong Seizure of 51,326 BTC.
US Leads in Largest Bitcoin Holdings
Due to its extensive Bitcoin portfolio, the United States has recently emerged as one of the largest crypto holders on a regional scale. Arkham’s data showed that the US held around 212,847 Bitcoins as of April 2024, outpacing countries like the UK and Germany.
In addition to Bitcoin, the authorities also owned a significant portion of Ethereum (ETH) and other cryptocurrencies, such as USDT and USDC, with a total valuation of $200 million.
The UK and Germany took second and third place, respectively. Arkham reported that the British government held around 61,245 BTC, while the German government owned 49,858 BTC.
US Government Sells Bitcoin Holdings
Despite holding a significant amount of Bitcoin, the US government has periodically sold portions of its crypto holdings, especially BTC.
For example, in March 2023, the US sold approximately 10,000 Bitcoins linked to the Silk Road case. In January of this year, the government disclosed its intention to sell another portion of Bitcoin worth around $130 million.
Additionally, data from researcher Jameson Lopp revealed that the US Marshals had facilitated the sale of 195,000 BTC on behalf of the government. The total BTC seized and sold amounts to 195,091.75, yielding a total sales gain of $366 million.
Last month, the US government transferred another portion of the Silk Road seizure, valued at approximately $200 million at the time, to Coinbase. The exchange received around 30,175 Bitcoins from a wallet associated with the US government.
