The German government remained in motion Bitcoin of his assets to crypto exchanges on Monday morning, with more than $28 million worth of BTC being transferred to Coinbase and Bitstamp.
Addresses linked to the German government by crypto analytics firm Arkham moved 250 BTC each to Coinbase and Bitstamp. Another 500 BTC worth $28 million was also sent to an unknown address.
According to an Arkham Intelligence dashboard, the German government’s Bitcoin holdings amount to 38,826 BTC seized as a result of criminal cases, worth over $2.23 billion at current prices. The bulk of the holdings were seized in a piracy operation in January, when Bitcoin was trading at around $46,000.
In recent days, the German government has been selling its Bitcoin via crypto exchanges, which price of Bitcoin to fall to lows below $55,000 and wreak havoc on the broader crypto markets. At the time of publication, Bitcoin’s price has recovered to around $57,590, trading flat for the day.
Over the weekend, Joana Cotar, an independent member of the Bundestag, accused the German government of having “no strategy” for dealing with Bitcoin. She stated: “I am not at all sure that the government was or is aware of the consequences of selling it.”
Others have seized the opportunity presented by the sale of Bitcoin in Germany. For example, controversial Tron founder Justin Sun made a public offer for the German government’s remaining BTC holdings to “minimize the impact on the market.”
Bitcoin Selling Pressure
Analysts said Decipher that selling pressure on Bitcoin is unlikely to abate in the coming days, as the sell-off in Germany over the past week was exacerbated by the transfer of funds from the bankruptcy estate of defunct crypto exchange Mt. Gox.
Mt. Gox users are waiting to be reimbursed for up to $7.7 billion in lost funds from a hack more than a decade ago. Refunds are expected to begin in July.