Many crypto experts and on-chain investors became excited today, when it was revealed that U.S. authorities transferred 10,000 BTC, equivalent to jaw-dropping $593 million, to the Coinbase Prime platform. Against this backdrop, the first cryptocurrency's exchange rate dropped to $58,000 at one point, and even lower.
Thanks to on-chain history, it turned out that these were crypto assets from the case of the infamous darknet marketplace, called Silk Road. The court approved an order to seize them in December 2023.
Transferring assets to an exchange's escrow address often indicates an intent to sell them. This is what has the crypto public worried, especially in light of the recent story with Germany and its $3 billion Bitcoin holdings.
Samson Mow, a prominent crypto figure and proponent of the $1 million per Bitcoin (BTC) theory, volunteered to dispel fear, doubt and uncertainty. No, the U.S. government did not just sell 10,000 BTC, says Mow. On the contrary, crypto funds were moved there for safekeeping a few weeks ago, claims the expert.
In fact, on July 1, Coinbase Institutional announced that the U.S. Marshals Service selected Coinbase Prime to provide custody and advanced trading services for its large-cap digital assets portfolio. However, so far, little is known about what exactly happens to tokens once they hit a centralized platform.