K33 Research: The U.S. government transferred approximately 17,700 BTC, most likely as a custody operation rather than a sale

According to K33 Research, the U.S. government transferred approximately 17,733 BTC to Coinbase Prime this week, including 12,267 BTC related to the Bitfinex hacking incident. After the transfer, the government's marked holdings decreased from 324,527 BTC to 306,795 BTC. If we include unmarked suspected government wallets, the total amount of BTC transferred to Coinbase Prime is about 21,500 BTC.

Analysis suggests that this transfer is likely a custody operation rather than a sale—Coinbase Prime has been the custodian for the U.S. Marshals Service since 2024. The cryptocurrencies related to Bitfinex are still in the claims process, and the Department of Justice has requested that victims be compensated in BTC; the ban on the strategic Bitcoin reserve only covers cryptocurrencies that have been fully confiscated. Additionally, about 1,200 BTC from FTX and HashFlare were transferred simultaneously, which may be paid to victims in cash through compensation channels.

It is noteworthy that approximately 15,000 BTC related to Bitfinex claims were transferred within two days, which may indicate that the distribution plan or related rulings are progressing.