{"id":14130,"date":"2025-07-17T19:20:50","date_gmt":"2025-07-17T17:20:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wsj-crypto.com\/?p=14130"},"modified":"2025-07-17T19:20:50","modified_gmt":"2025-07-17T17:20:50","slug":"did-the-us-government-liquidate-170000-btc-marshals-unveil-astonishing-cryptocurrency-holdings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wsj-crypto.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/17\/did-the-us-government-liquidate-170000-btc-marshals-unveil-astonishing-cryptocurrency-holdings\/","title":{"rendered":"Did the US Government Liquidate 170,000 BTC? Marshals Unveil Astonishing Cryptocurrency Holdings"},"content":{"rendered":"

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A speculation is quickly circulating among crypto enthusiasts that the US government might have discreetly liquidated nearly 170,000 BTC, leaving only a small portion of its presumed assets unchanged. The <\/span>theories arose following<\/span><\/a> a FOIA request that led the US Marshals Service to disclose it currently possesses only 28,988 BTC, estimated to be worth about $3.4 billion.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Numerous crypto investors interpreted this revelation to indicate that the federal government’s total Bitcoin reserves had diminished from the previously assumed total of around 200,000 BTC. The assertion gained traction on the social media platform X, where even several public figures commented on what seems to be a considerable strategic offloading by the US government.<\/span><\/p>\n

FOIA Request Misunderstood<\/h2>\n

The misconceptions regarding the US government divesting the bulk of its Bitcoin assets appear to arise <\/span>from the misreading of the<\/span><\/a> specific assets held by the US Marshals Service versus those of the entire federal government. The FOIA application that ignited the discussion <\/span>was filed by<\/span><\/a> journalist L0la L33tz, and correctly indicates that the Marshals oversee just under 29,000 BTC. However, this only reflects the Bitcoin in the custody of this particular agency.<\/span><\/p>\n

Related Reading<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n

On-chain insights from<\/span><\/a> blockchain analytical firm Arkham Intelligence present a very contrasting scenario. According to Arkham, the US government as a whole still retains roughly 198,000 BTC, valued at over $23.46 billion at the current Bitcoin price. These assets are spread across different federal agencies and<\/span> are not confined to <\/span><\/a>the holdings of the Marshals. Nonetheless, the misinterpretation spread rapidly.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Even US Senator Cynthia Lummis, a prominent supporter of Bitcoin, addressed the <\/span>speculation, stating<\/span><\/a>, \u201cI\u2019m concerned by claims that the U.S. has liquidated over 80% of its Bitcoin reserves, leaving merely ~29,000 coins. If accurate, this represents a significant strategic error and retards the United States\u2019 progress in the Bitcoin race.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

What If the US Secretly Liquidated 170,000 BTC?<\/h2>\n

The fallout from the broader crypto market would be staggering if the US government had indeed discreetly sold 170,000 BTC. Such a sale would generate immense selling pressure and trigger a drastic decline in Bitcoin’s value. This action would undermine investor confidence in the larger cryptocurrency market and initiate a cascade of liquidations across other digital currencies. Such a maneuver would not only result in technical failures in price structure but also <\/span>eliminate the potential for<\/span><\/a> governments worldwide to hold crypto as a strategic reserve.<\/span><\/p>\n

Related Reading<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n

Furthermore, such a sell-off would starkly oppose the federal policy direction established earlier this year. In March, President Donald Trump <\/span>issued an executive directive <\/span><\/a>Mandating all federal agencies to transfer their Bitcoin and digital asset holdings to the US Treasury. This directive formalized the establishment of a Bitcoin reserve, intended to acknowledge the cryptocurrency as a national asset. Considering that policy, the idea that the US <\/span>would secretly liquidate<\/span><\/a> the bulk of its Bitcoin assets seems exceedingly unlikely under the current administration’s directives.<\/span><\/p>\n

At the time of this writing, Bitcoin is trading at $118,360.<\/span><\/p>\n

BTC trading at $118,968 on the 1D chart | Source: BTCUSDT on Tradingview.com<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Featured image from Pixabay, chart from Tradingview.com<\/p>\n<\/div>\n


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Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A speculation is quickly circulating among crypto enthusiasts that the US government might have discreetly liquidated nearly 170,000 BTC, leaving only a small portion of its presumed assets unchanged. The theories arose following a FOIA request that led the US Marshals Service to disclose it currently possesses only 28,988 BTC, estimated to be worth about<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":14131,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[3026,3027],"class_list":["post-14130","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-bitcoin","tag-gptreturn-a-list-of-comma-separated-tags-from-this-title-did-the-us-government-dump-170","tag-000-btc-marshals-reveal-shocking-bitcoin-holdings-gpt"],"yoast_head":"\nDid the US Government Liquidate 170,000 BTC? 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