The German government has moved Bitcoin ($BTC) tokens worth $195 million to exchange platforms. It has sparked speculation that the government’s intention may be to shed some weight by selling the holdings. Out of the four transactions that have been recorded, three are undoubtedly associated with Bitstamp, Kraken, and Coinbase. The data was first published by Arkham Intelligence, adding that the German government has now transferred an overall value of $600 million BTC to June 19, 2024.
BKA, the German Federal Criminal Police Officer, is believed to have carried out these transfers. Authorities seized almost 50,000 Bitcoin tokens from Movie2k.to, a privacy site. It is one of the largest crypto confiscations in history. The government still holds 47,179 BTC in its name. These are worth around $3 billion, per the data published by Arkham Intelligence.
For reference, a single BTC is exchanging hands at $64,589.02 at the press time. The value has declined by 1.38% in the last 24 hours and 3.50% in the last 7 days.
The market has its speculation in place, wondering if selling funds via exchanges will trigger selling pressure across the ecosystem. This could potentially hinder the price chart’s movement and lead to a potential downturn, thereby detracting from the recent high point of approximately $73,000.
What’s left with Germany is sufficient for the country to retain the 4th spot across nations that have Bitcoin tokens to their names. BitcoinTreasuries has indicated that the US holds the most Bitcoin tokens, with a collection worth approximately $13.9 billion. China and the UK follow the US with holdings of $12.4 billion and $4 billion, respectively, in the same order. Over the last few years, governments have accumulated BTC through law enforcement seizures.
El Salvador is an exception in the sense that it accumulates BTC through donations, investments, and purchases. As a result, the country has been classified as a pioneer in crypto adoption. Last seen, the country boasted holdings worth $390 million, bringing the total number of tokens to almost 5,779. Bhutan has emerged as a surprise. Reportedly, the Asian country has been mining BTC since 2019 and now has 621 tokens to its name.
A downfall in BTC’s value could be linked to the move by the German government. It is challenging to draw a definitive conclusion, as multiple factors influence the prices of cryptocurrencies. One can only assume that the move is one of the factors responsible for BTC breaking through the resistance of $65,000.
Nevertheless, a jump to $85,000 in the next 30 days is still on the horizon. Crypto enthusiasts see this as a point from which it will only rebound to a higher value. As per our Bitcoin price prediction, it is expected to close 2024 on a higher note, probably as high as $100,000.