The U.S. government moved $288 million of seized bitcoin and ether to Coinbase Prime, raising questions about compliance with a previous executive order.
The U.S. government has transferred nearly $288 million in seized cryptocurrencies, specifically bitcoin and ether, to Coinbase Prime. This transfer occurred over a short period on Monday, as indicated by blockchain analytics from Arkham.
Interestingly, this move seemingly conflicts with a March 2025 executive order from former President Donald Trump, which aimed to create a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and barred the sale of seized cryptocurrencies.
In the transactions, 2,875 BTC, valued at about $178 million, was moved from a wallet linked to Ryan Farace, associated with the infamous "xanaxman" case, to a new address and then to Coinbase Prime. Additionally, another wallet tied to the now-defunct BTC-e exchange contributed 925.512 BTC, worth around $57 million, which was sent directly to Coinbase Prime.
Ether was sent in a more straightforward manner, with a wallet connected to Brian Krewson, implicated in a $54 million laundering operation, transferring 30,007 ETH, valued at $53.09 million, directly to Coinbase Prime.
Another notable transaction involved 140.214 BTC being transferred between government addresses on Coinbase and a cold wallet, suggesting possible fund management without external sales.
While the routing of these funds to an exchange does not guarantee immediate sales, it has sparked speculation. Analysts note that such transfers might indicate preparations for future asset management or exchanges involving stablecoins, given that sizable portions of cryptocurrency are usually kept secure in cold wallets.
After these transactions, the government still holds around $20.65 billion in cryptocurrency, which includes 324,552 BTC, 28,394 ETH, and 145.549 million USDT, indicating that the recent transfers represent a minor portion of its total assets.
