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The United States government has added $922 million in Bitcoin to its massive hoard. This was done by seizing wallets linked with Bitfinex hackers.
The United States Federal Government has amassed and held enough Bitcoin over the years through various asset forfeitures and seizures to be considered one of the biggest whales. The overwhelming crypto-anarchist sentiment amongst the Bitcoin community in the early days led to various extralegal ventures. Most famously, the Silk Road. This overtly-illegalist era in the industry has more or less ended, but the success these early ventures brought accumulated massive amounts Bitcoin. These Bitcoins were eventually acquired by the US government.
Silk Road has not been the only site to be the target of massive seizures by law enforcement agencies. source. On multiple occasions The last few yearsAs a result, the government has added their massive collection of assets to that of the hackers who stole from the Silk Road. Even though hundreds Millions of Bitcoins are being generated from this source Even though billions have been sold through government auctions and other means, millions more are left. The law enforcement agencies, on the other hand, seem to be unfazed. hurry These assets should be washed away.
Stockpiles were depleted on February 29. grew Once again, the government removed more than 15k Bitcoins from two Bitfinex hacker’s wallets. Ilya Lichtenstein, Heather “Razzlekhan” Morgan has recently been a part of the recent testified About their 2016 hack of Bitfinex. It ranks as one the most lucrative heists ever with almost 120k Bitcoins stolen. Bitfinex remains one of oldest and most prominent exchanges within the crypto-ecosystem, but the scars left by a theft that size are still visible. US citizens, as well as citizens of several other countries, are prohibited from using the platform. Maybe it’s for this reason the Justice Department has banned access to the platform. refused If the government is planning to reimburse Bitfinex 2016 customers who had their money stolen, then they should state this.
A seizure of this magnitude has highlighted once again the inability of the government to manage its finances. size Bitcoin Reserve of the Federal Government. The government’s dealings are public and Bitcoin transactions are also transparent. Analysts are confident that the United States has just under 200k bitcoins worth $12.1 billion. The United States is unmistakably the largest whale out there. Only Binance and Satoshi hold more. The government holds nearly 1% all Bitcoin currently in circulation. No matter what claims Although prosecutors are not interested in maximising profits, the government still has considerable leverage.
The recent seizures of these items is particularly intriguing comments Edward Snowden is an exiled whistleblower. Snowden, in particular, predicted that Bitcoin would be accepted by traditional and regulatory finance around the world. “A national government will be revealed this year to have been buying Bitcoin—the modern replacement for monetary gold—without having disclosed that fact publicly”. After all, if Bitcoin is digital gold, it makes sense that powerful countries would want to accumulate reserves. Nayib Bukele, the Salvadoran President, has a famously used this strategy. He welcomed the new bull market by a declaration It is worth noting that the value of his country’s Bitcoin investment increased by 40 percent since initial purchases. He does not intend to sell, of course.
Snowden’s statements seem to be particularly pertinent, as the United States have not purchased any Bitcoins it currently owns. Although the government is theoretically responsible for disposing of these assets the pace has been slow. In the meantime, Congress could easily stop these sales. A genuine Bitcoin reserve would be created overnight if the government decided to change its policy. Snowden predicted that governments would acquire Bitcoin in secret and that they could deny it. We don’t hold a reserve. These assets are being reserved for a future sale. It’s not suspicious at all!
A government that wanted to secretly acquire large amounts of Bitcoin would face many transparency issues due to the distrustless blockchain. The anonymous aspect of Bitcoin’s blockchain is a major problem. “Mr. 100” Has made headlines The 15th largest whale was acquired by acquiring 100 BTC a day during the entire month of February. While chain analysts tried to identify the purchaser, speculation It has been established that the government of a particular country is responsible. According to the timing of the purchase and several other factors the buyer is probably in Asia or the Middle East. Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia—all these are strong candidates to be the coins’ rightful owners.
It is easier for a government to acquire assets directly than to purchase them at their fair value. If the transactions are going to be recorded on blockchain anyway, why not save the money? It is not surprising that the UK would be able to do this in a similar way as the Americans. seized In January, $1.77 billion was spent. These bitcoins were seized by a British government that has no way to recover these funds. subsequently The government has passed legislation that gives it more power to freeze or seize cryptocurrency assets. It doesn’t take much for a cryptocurrency hoard to grow. own right.
At this point, Bitcoin’s community has moved on from its defiant attitude toward law enforcement. Bitcoin can be used to commit crimes just as any other currency can, but the truth is that Bitcoin has become more acceptable for governments around the world. US regulators have approved a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), and other countries It is raining like dominoes It is important that they endorse it. It will be necessary for powerful governments, to maintain their competitiveness and stay ahead of their competitors. own Reserves of Bitcoin. The US controls almost 1% of an industry that is massive and has a lot of leverage. Is the US going to be alone in having this kind of leverage? The race to stockpile these weapons in secret may be difficult, but it has already started. Bitcoin is the ultimate winner in this race, regardless of who wins.
“This article is not financial advice.”
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Source: bitcoinmagazine.com