In a significant move, German authorities have sold 10,567 BTC, equivalent to $600 million, contributing to an 18% decline in Bitcoin’s price over the past month. This, along with the sell-offs from Mt. Gox and Genesis Trading, has had a notable impact on the cryptocurrency market.
As of 1:00 p.m. EST on Thursday, July 11, the German authorities’ wallets now hold a remaining 4,925 BTC, valued at $285 million. This represents a massive decrease of more than 90% in BTC holdings, down from the initial 50,000 BTC worth nearly $3 billion when the assets were first sold three weeks ago. Since Germany began liquidating their Bitcoin, the price has corrected by approximately 18%.
According to blockchain data from Arkham Intelligence, the German authorities’ Bitcoin wallets have transferred the aforementioned 10,567 BTC, valued at over $600 million, to exchanges such as Bitstamp, Coinbase, and Kraken, as well as other service providers.
In June, crypto.news reported that the German Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) had seized around 50,000 BTC from the operators of Movie2k.to, a popular piracy movie website, back in 2013. The BKA received the Bitcoin in mid-January after the suspects voluntarily transferred the funds.
In an effort to minimize market damage, Tron founder Justin Sun recently proposed buying Germany’s Bitcoin.
Despite Germany nearing the end of its sell-off, there are still other entities that need to sell their BTC. Mt. Gox, once one of the largest Bitcoin exchanges before its collapse in 2014, has begun repaying its creditors after a lengthy process. This repayment involves over 140,000 BTC, 143,000 Bitcoin Cash, and 69 billion Japanese yen, totaling around $9 billion. Analysts have expressed concerns that the sudden increase in BTC supply could lead to significant downward pressure on prices, as creditors may sell off their holdings to secure profits.
Additionally, Genesis Trading has been actively selling BTC over the past month, further contributing to the selling pressure in the market. The combined actions of Mt. Gox and Genesis Trading, along with Germany’s sell-off, have worsened Bitcoin’s recent price decline, which has already seen an 18% drop in the past month.