• Justin Sun offers to buy the German government’s $2.3B Bitcoin holdings off-market to minimize market impact
• The German government-linked wallet has been steadily selling its Bitcoin holdings, potentially creating selling pressure
• The 50,000 BTC held by the wallet is believed to have been seized from the pirate movie website operator Movie2k
The German government currently holds around $2.3 billion worth of Bitcoin that was seized from an illegal website. As the government sells portions of this Bitcoin stash, it threatens to create downward selling pressure on Bitcoin’s price. In an effort to minimize the impact on the Bitcoin market, popular crypto founder Justin Sun has offered to buy the remaining Bitcoin off-market.
Background on German Government’s Bitcoin Holdings
In January 2024, the German government seized around 50,000 Bitcoin from the operator of the illegal movie website Movie2k in Dresden. The seized Bitcoin was believed to be worth around $2.3 billion at the time.
The Bitcoin was held by Germany’s Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA). However, a BKA spokeswoman has clarified that the BKA does not actually hold the seized Bitcoin. Instead, the Bitcoin is under the authority of the Land Revenue Office where the competent court overseeing the case is located.
The First Signs of Selling
In mid-June 2024, a crypto wallet labeled as the “German Government BKA” wallet began transferring large amounts of Bitcoin.
On June 19, the wallet transferred 6,500 Bitcoin worth $425 million to various unknown wallets. This raised suspicions that the government had begun selling the seized Movie2k Bitcoin stash.
Continued Bitcoin Sales
Since mid-June, the German government wallet has continued selling portions of its Bitcoin holdings.
Recent sales include:
- July 4: Transfer of 1,720 Bitcoin worth $172 million to crypto exchanges Coinbase, Kraken and Bitstamp
- July 2: Transfer of 522 Bitcoin worth $52 million to Coinbase, Kraken and Bitstamp
Justin Sun’s Offer to Buy the Remaining Bitcoin
The government’s selling of such a large Bitcoin stash threatens to put significant downward pressure on Bitcoin’s price.
In an effort to minimize the impact on the Bitcoin market, Tron founder Justin Sun has publicly offered to buy the remaining Bitcoin off-market. On July 4, Sun tweeted to his 35 million followers:
“I am willing to negotiate with the German government to purchase all BTC off-market in order to minimize the impact on the market.”
By purchasing the Bitcoin from the government rather than having the government sell it on exchanges, the sales would not negatively affect Bitcoin’s spot price. Sun did not specify how much he is willing to pay for the remaining stash.
It remains to be seen if the German government will take Sun up on his offer. But his proposal demonstrates an interest in maintaining Bitcoin market stability during a period of heavy government selling pressure.
