This week, I recorded significant activity on wallets associated with the U.S. government. According to data from the analytics platform Arkham, a large pool of digital assets was transferred to a Coinbase Prime deposit address. In total, 3,940 BTC and 30,014 ETH were moved, equivalent to approximately $297 million at current market rates.
It is important to emphasize: these funds are confiscated assets seized during several criminal investigations. The transfer to a custodial platform itself is not a trigger for immediate liquidation. Such actions by U.S. authorities are often interpreted by the market as preparation for a sale, but in practice, this could simply be a reorganization of storage or a step toward more formalized asset management.
Scale of the U.S. Crypto Reserve
For context: based on my estimates from previous reports, the total volume of crypto assets controlled by the U.S. government amounts to approximately $20.6 billion. This portfolio includes 325,000 BTC, 28,000 ETH, 146 million USDT, and 750 WBTC. The current transfer, while impressive in amount, is only a part of this vast base.
Expert Commentary: The market tends to panic at the sight of large transfers from government wallets, but in this case, I see no direct signals of a sell-off. If liquidation were the goal, we would see direct transactions to exchange order books, not just a deposit to Prime. Most likely, this is a technical or administrative step. However, investors should stay vigilant: any subsequent withdrawal from Coinbase Prime to the open market would become a bearish signal capable of exerting short-term pressure on BTC and ETH. For now, this is just a movement, not panic.