Germany Has Been Secretly Accumulating Bitcoin (BTC) From Seizures, Now Holds $3B Worth

By mid-June 2024, analysts, investors, and two-dimensional blockchain sleuths have taken to tracking the cryptocurrency transfers of highly uncommon  Bitcoin (BTC) whales: The government of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Germany has been making headlines recently for its surprising involvement in the cryptocurrency world. As of mid-June 2024, the country has reportedly been moving vast quantities of Bitcoin (BTC) to several exchanges, including Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN), Kraken, and Bitstamp.

Over the last two days alone, Germany deposited 1,700 Bitcoins ($108 million) into these exchanges and now holds a total of over 47,000 BTC ($3 billion). But where did Germany get all this Bitcoin in the first place?

Although there have been several theories regarding the origins of Germany's BTC - including unconfirmed reports that governments worldwide have been secretly purchasing the cryptocurrency for years - the assets can be traced back to a seizure conducted by the nation's law enforcement.

In January 2024, the Saxon State Criminal Police Office reportedly took possession of the Bitcoins from two individuals suspected of operating a piracy website until late 2013. It was alleged that the BTC was purchased using the illegal profits from the operation.

The German authorities' activities came at a relatively sensitive moment, as their deposits coincided with a significant multi-day drop in the price of Bitcoin, which saw the cryptocurrency decline nearly 10% over the last 30 days of trading.

However, it is unlikely that Germany will substantially contribute to a price drop despite holding nearly 50,000 BTC. About a year ago, certain observers and members of the crypto community were apprehensive as the U.S. government was moving a similar amount of Bitcoin seized from the dark web platform Silk Road.

The offloading of the assets had no major impact on the crypto markets and, in fact, did not hinder the massive BTC rally that began in late 2023, which saw it climb from around $27,000 to $63,682 - the Bitcoin price today.

News source：https://www.kdj.com/cryptocurrencies-news/articles/germany-secretly-accumulating-bitcoin-btc-seizures-holds-b-worth.html

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