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ZEC $1,211 US government moves $770M of seized Bitcoin to Coinbase Prime
Galaxy Research says the two-day transfer of 9,261 BTC included 2,456 coins from wallets not previously labeled as government holdings.
Key takeaways
- The transfer is large. The US government moved 9,261 BTC worth $770 million to Coinbase Prime over two days.
- Part is unidentified. 2,456 BTC came from wallets not previously labeled as government holdings, Galaxy said.
- Custody is not a sale. Coinbase Prime offers custody and trading, so a deposit does not prove selling.
What happened
The US government moved 9,261 Bitcoin to Coinbase Prime over two days, Galaxy Research wrote in a Thursday X post. The coins were worth $770 million and came from asset seizures tied to earlier crypto exploits.
About half of the coins were recovered from the Bitfinex hackers, while another portion came from known Binance seizures, Galaxy said.
Another 2,456 BTC came from holdings that had not previously been identified as government funds and went to the government's seizure address on Coinbase Prime, Galaxy added.
Galaxy tracked about 834 BTC moving on Oct. 6, before a much larger transfer on Oct. 7 brought the two-day total to around 9,261 BTC.
Why it matters
Coinbase Prime provides custody and trading, so the transfers alone do not prove government selling activity.
The US Marshals Service has used Coinbase Prime to hold seized assets since 2024 and selected the platform for custody and advanced trading in the federal forfeiture system.
A sale would conflict with US President Donald Trump's March 2025 executive order, which said seized Bitcoin should not be sold and should become part of the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve. That order bars sales of reserve Bitcoin but allows court-ordered and victim-related transfers.
Galaxy estimates that US government-linked wallets now hold roughly 319,086 Bitcoin across seizure-related addresses on chain.
What the data shows
The Justice Department said Ilya Lichtenstein stole 119,754 BTC from Bitfinex and later tried to launder the funds.
Federal agents seized more than 94,000 BTC in 2022 after obtaining private keys to a wallet holding part of the stolen funds.
A federal court ordered 94,643 BTC and associated forked assets returned to Bitfinex in restitution proceedings.
Galaxy said the main address holding roughly 94,643 BTC remains unmoved, so the latest Bitfinex-linked transfer does not represent the entire recovered balance.
In July, the US government moved $297 million in Bitcoin and Ether to Coinbase Prime, with funds from high-profile crypto seizures.
What is still unclear
- Galaxy said the previously unidentified coins may represent new law enforcement seizures, based on their transfer path into the same Coinbase Prime deposit address used for government assets.
- No Department of Justice or US Marshals Service statement reviewed for this report has confirmed a new seizure involving the 2,456 BTC.
- The report says the US Marshals and the Department of Justice were contacted for comment on the transfers.
Questions readers ask
Why did the US government send Bitcoin to Coinbase Prime?
Coinbase Prime handles custody for seized assets and has been used by the US Marshals Service since 2024. The platform also offers trading, but a deposit alone does not prove selling.
Did the US government sell the Bitcoin?
No sale has been confirmed. Trump's March 2025 order bars sales of reserve Bitcoin but allows court-ordered and victim-related transfers.
How much Bitcoin does the US government hold?
Galaxy estimates that US government-linked wallets hold roughly 319,086 Bitcoin across seizure-related addresses on chain.
Where did the 2,456 BTC come from?
Galaxy said the coins came from previously unidentified holdings and may represent new law enforcement seizures. No reviewed DOJ or Marshals statement has confirmed a new seizure involving that amount.
