German bitcoin sale is about to complete, here’s how much is left

The German state of Saxony is quickly depleting its Bitcoin reserves after unloading another batch of assets seized from crypto exchanges on Thursday.

Earlier this year, the government seized Bitcoin from Movie2K, a movie piracy website. It then began auctioning off about $3 billion worth of BTC.

German sale hits 35,000 BTC this week

On Thursday, Bitcoin wallets linked to German authorities transferred 10,567 BTC (about $600 million) to various entities, including Bitstamp, Coinbase, Kraken, Flow Traders and Cumberland DRW.

According to blockchain data from Arkham Intelligence, these transactions occurred in multiple batches throughout the day. The wallets now hold just 6,894 BTC ($394 million), down from nearly 50,000 BTC when they went on sale three weeks ago.

At the current rate, Germany could end the sale before Friday or early next week, considering they have unloaded around 35,000 BTC this week alone.

It’s worth noting that the total count may still fluctuate, as the German government had just under 5,000 BTC yesterday. This is due to the unusual practice of portfolios receiving portions of transferred assets, sometimes in the $10 million range, from exchanges and brokers before the end of the day.

Greg Cipolaro, head of research at digital asset manager NYDIG, described this activity on the chain as “puzzling” in a note on Wednesday.

UPDATE: The German government is running out of Bitcoin.

The German government just sent another 5000 BTC ($286.44 million) to Flow Traders, Coinbase, Kraken, Bitstamp, 139Po and bc1qu.

Today, they have transferred 10627 BTC ($615.33 million) in total to market makers and exchanges.

They… https://t.co/vXtHwzUieK pic.twitter.com/4bOI56BJgN

— Arkham (@ArkhamIntel) July 11, 2024

Oversupply concerns from crypto investors voice

The sale of Bitcoin in Germany has been in the news for the past few weeks, leaving crypto investors worried about its impact on the market. Most have linked the recent fall in asset prices to fears of oversupply.

German lawmaker and Bitcoin activist Joana Cotar has criticized the German government, saying it should have adopted the asset as a “strategic reserve currency” to protect itself from risks in the traditional financial system.

Similarly, the US government, which has more than $12 billion in seized Bitcoin, has transferred $240 million worth of Silk Road-related BTC to Coinbase. In addition, the defunct Japanese stock exchange Mt. Gox has transferred its Bitcoin to creditors. These actions have raised concerns among investors, given the fall in BTC during these sales.

According to NYDIG’s Cipolaro, fears about impending selling pressure may have been overblown. He further added that BTC’s fall exceeded the expected price impact if all potential sales materialized.

Bitcoin is trading at $57,281, down 6% over the past week and down 15% over the past month. Meanwhile, the series of bearish events has pushed the Crypto Fear & Greed Index, an indicator that tracks market sentiment, into the “Extreme Fear” zone for the first time since January last year.

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