Germany Nears Completion of Bitcoin Sell-Off
As of 1:00 p.m. EST, Thursday, July 11, the wallets linked to German authorities hold a remaining 4,925 BTC, currently valued at $285 million. This marks more than a 90% decrease in Bitcoin held, down from the 50,000 Bitcoin worth nearly $3 billion when they started selling the assets three weeks ago. BTC has corrected roughly 18% since Germany began their Bitcoin liquidation.
Massive Transfer of Bitcoin to Exchanges
German authorities’ Bitcoin wallets transferred 10,567 BTC worth over $600 million today to exchanges like Bitstamp, Coinbase, and Kraken, as well as other service providers, according to blockchain data from Arkham Intelligence.
Earlier in June, reported that the German Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) originally seized about 50,000 Bitcoin from the operators of the popular piracy movie website Movie2k.to in 2013. The BKA obtained the Bitcoin in mid-January after receiving a “voluntary transfer” from the suspects.
Market Impact and Sell-Off Fears
Even though Germany appears to be nearing the end of its sell-off, other entities still need to sell their BTC.
Mt. Gox, which was one of the largest Bitcoin exchanges until it collapsed in 2014, began repaying its creditors after a decade-long process. This payout involves over 140,000 BTC, 143,000 Bitcoin Cash, and 69 billion Japanese yen, totaling approximately $9 billion.
Many analysts were concerned that the unexpected increase in the supply of Bitcoin in the market would lead to significant downward pressure on prices. They feared that many creditors would sell off their holdings to lock in profits.
Additional Selling Pressure from Genesis Trading
Adding to the pressure, Genesis Trading has also been actively selling BTC over the last month. Genesis has been liquidating assets, contributing to the increased selling pressure on the market.
These combined activities from Mt. Gox and Genesis Trading — coupled with German selling — have exacerbated Bitcoin’s recent price decline, which has already seen an 18% drop in the past month.
