By removing more than $2 billion worth of Bitcoin from its Silk Road cryptocurrency hoard, the US government has sparked controversy within the cryptocurrency community.
The US government’s recent Onchain actions come after Donald Trump declared during a speech at a Bitcoin conference that, should he win, he would stop the US from selling its Bitcoin holdings.
The US government’s Onchain action also prompted conjecture in the cryptocurrency world around worries that the government would sell up its holdings in Bitcoin. The price of bitcoin will be impacted if this takes place.
Blockchain research company, Arkham Intelligence discovered the US government’s transaction and informed the cryptocurrency community via a post on their X page.
Arkham’s post holds: “BREAKING: The US. The government just moved $2B of Bitcoin to a new address: bc1qsl993y04xnq4fyhmrt6cnmctgjjv9ukdvrk0cd.”
Continuing, Arkham stated that the transactions of $1.33 billion and $669 million were done in two installments. As per Arkham, the monies were transferred to an institutional custodian; Coinbase was the most probable option owing to its past involvement with wallets associated with the US government.
“UPDATE: The U.S. Government has split the $2B Bitcoin into two addresses: 10,000 BTC ($669.35M): bc1qlap8hkt9genaljz5nt2zlehhudx63zlahr2zek 19,800 BTC ($1.33B): bc1qngydl7hmgdtmuqjmtsyj3pcwszv0yn5mj6kz4c We believe this represents a 10,000 BTC deposit to an institutional custody/service,” Arkham added .
Following the transaction, Bitcoin had a 1% dip after nearly reaching $70,000 for the first time since May.
Reactions From The Crypto Community On The Transaction
According to BrandSpur banking and finance news reports, the recent US action alarmed the cryptocurrency community, particularly Bitcoin fans. The shifting of more than $2 billion in Bitcoin assets suggests that the US government may be planning a sell-off, which soured investor confidence.
This came about as a result of pro-BTC statements and Donald Trump’s vow, should he win, to stop selling off US government-owned Bitcoin holdings.
Gemini co-founder and Winklevoss twin Tyler expressed his thoughts on the situation, highlighting the administration’s conflicting position.
According to Tyler’s X post: “On Saturday, @realDonaldTrump pledged to never sell any of the US government’s bitcoin. Two days later, the Biden-Harris Administration moved $2 billion of Silk Road bitcoin. Great look and a great way to reset with our industry.”
The Current State of Bitcoin
With a maximum price of $69,907 and a low price of $65,911, the price of Bitcoin has dropped 4.3% in the last day to $66,552 at the time of reporting. Since reaching its peak on March 14 at $73,737, the cryptocurrency asset has decreased by 9.5%.
It is pertinent to know that following the German government’s sale of around $50,000 worth of Bitcoin, which caused the price to drop as low as $54,000, Bitcoin has entirely rebounded over the past several weeks. There are rumours circulating regarding another round of sell offs by the US government, which might have a detrimental effect on the price of Bitcoin.
