Daniel Walker
There has been a lot of positive news surrounding Bitcoin recently, but a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling might cast a shadow over the excitement. The U.S. government has now received the green light to proceed with the sale of 69,370 BTC linked to the Silk Road marketplace. Such a massive sale could exert significant selling pressure on BTC, potentially affecting its price negatively.
The Supreme Court’s decision came after it denied a certiorari petition in the case of Battle Born Investments vs. the United States. This ruling allows the government to move forward with selling over 69,000 BTC, a move that could weigh heavily on BTCโs market value.
These Bitcoins, valued at $4.4 billion, were originally seized from an individual known as โIndividual X,โ who had ties to the Silk Road dark web marketplace. In 2022, the Northern District of California ordered the forfeiture of these assets, but Battle Born Investments contested the decision, claiming ownership of the bitcoins. The company had bought bankruptcy claims after the collapse of Silk Road, arguing that the BTC in question rightfully belonged to them, as it was stolen by โIndividual X.โ Despite these claims, the Supreme Court has decided not to hear their appeal, leaving the previous court’s ruling intact.
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US Government Given Approval to Sell BTC
The Supreme Court’s refusal to hear the case means the Northern District of California’s forfeiture ruling remains valid, allowing the U.S. government to sell the seized BTC. While this news suggests a bearish outlook for Bitcoin in the near term, the actual sale still requires formal procedures by agencies like the U.S. Marshals Service before it takes place.
Interestingly, some voices within U.S. politics, like Democratic Representative Ro Khanna, suggest that the government should retain the seized Bitcoins as a strategic reserve. Similarly, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has also proposed creating a BTC reserve if elected. Given the significant amount of BTC that the U.S. government holds, largely from seizures, this idea could gain traction.
According to data from BitcoinTreasuries, the U.S. government is the largest holder of BTC among global governments, with a total of 203,239 BTC, much of it seized from the Silk Road case.
Any move by the U.S. to sell a portion of these holdings would echo the German government’s sale of nearly 50,000 BTC earlier this year, a move that sent Bitcoinโs price tumbling below $55,000 at the time. A similar large-scale sale could have a comparable impact on the market.
