US Transfers $103 Million in Seized BTC and BNB to Coinbase Prime

On October 7, wallets associated with the US government transferred a total of approximately $103.2 million worth of seized crypto assets through various addresses. According to on-chain data, the value of 833,599 BTC was calculated at $71.56 million, while the value of 40,285 BNB was estimated at $31.63 million. The main reason for the attention on these transfers was that Coinbase Prime provides institutional custody and trading infrastructure for the US Marshals Service.

Route and Scope of Transfers

The Bitcoin assets first passed through two unlabelled addresses before reaching wallets marked by Arkham as Coinbase Prime deposit addresses. BNB did not follow the same route directly. This asset was first transferred to an unlabelled wallet and then sent to another address, which ended in 81E, according to on-chain records.

Transfers to Coinbase Prime do not necessarily mean a sale; the same addresses can also be used for custody, asset management, and potential transaction preparations.

Therefore, these movements do not alone prove that BTC or BNB have been sold on the market. Since Coinbase Prime can provide both custody and institutional trading services, such entries may also serve administrative consolidation or asset management purposes.

Mini glossary: Coinbase Prime is a platform designed to provide custody, trading, and execution infrastructure for large investors and institutions. The US Marshals Service is one of the official agencies responsible for managing and liquidating seized assets at the federal level.

Source of Bitcoin and BNB

On-chain data shows that the 833,599 BTC came from two separate government-controlled pools. Approximately 568.7 BTC was linked to a seizure case involving Sergei Potapenko and Ivan Turõgin, while about 264.9 BTC was found to be associated with the 2016 Bitfinex hack.

The Potapenko and Turõgin case is connected to the HashFlare operation, where prosecutors alleged that the processing power offered to customers did not reflect reality. The two defendants pleaded guilty in February 2025 and agreed to forfeit assets exceeding $400 million. The US Department of Justice announced that these assets are planned to be used in the compensation process for victims.

The BNB assets were determined to have come from a seizure process linked to Alameda Research. Alameda Research is known as a trading firm associated with the FTX bankruptcy process.

Impact of Strategic Bitcoin Reserve

Transfers directed to Coinbase Prime are also significant due to recent changes in the US Bitcoin policy. The White House established the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve with a presidential decree dated March 6, 2025. According to the decree, the Bitcoin deposited in this reserve is not to be sold and is to be held as a US reserve asset. However, court rulings provide exceptions for victim compensation, law enforcement activities, and certain legal obligations.

The White House announced that the Bitcoin deposited in the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve will not be sold and will be preserved as a US reserve asset.

In this context, on-chain movements do not solely indicate the legal or accounting status of the assets. In other words, the occurrence of a Bitcoin transfer does not directly reveal whether that asset has been reserved or passed through a different administrative process.

No Confirmation of Market Sale

Current data only confirms that the transfer occurred and that Bitcoin reached addresses linked to Coinbase Prime. A completed market sale has not yet been confirmed. Without an official liquidation statement from US authorities or additional evidence showing direct sales on-chain, it does not seem possible to evaluate these movements as definitive sales transactions.

During the transfer, Bitcoin was trading at approximately $83,987, while BNB was trading between $768 and $779. Market participants are monitoring both new movements in government-linked wallets and potential continued transfers on the Coinbase Prime side.