US Government Moves $103M in BTC and BNB to Coinbase Prime

U.S. government-linked wallets moved about $103 million in cryptocurrency on October 7, 2026, sending 833.6 BTC worth roughly $71.56 million to Coinbase Prime and 40,285 BNB valued near $31.63 million through several addresses, according to Blockonomi. The BNB transfer ended at the unlabeled address 0xBE7…81E, per the on-chain trackers Lookonchain and EmberCN.

The Bitcoin destination drew attention because Coinbase Prime provides institutional custody and trading services. Blockonomi reported that the transfer on its own does not establish that any BTC was sold, and that no federal agency had announced a sale by October 7.

Key facts

• 833.6 BTC, about $71.56 million, went to Coinbase Prime, while 40,285 BNB, about $31.63 million, moved through several addresses to 0xBE7…81E.
• U.S. government-linked addresses still held roughly $28 billion in crypto after the transfers, including about 324,000 BTC worth $27.7 billion, per EmberCN.
• Transaction labels linked the Bitcoin to the Sergei Potapenko-Ivan Turõgin case and the 2016 Bitfinex hack; the BNB came from a wallet tied to seized FTX-Alameda funds.
• The U.S. Marshals Service selected Coinbase Prime in 2024 to manage large-cap digital assets held through federal forfeiture programs.
• Similar government-linked transfers occurred in July without a confirmed liquidation.

Reserve rules split Bitcoin from other coins

President Donald Trump’s March 2025 executive order created the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve alongside a separate U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile for non-Bitcoin assets. Under Executive Order 14233, Bitcoin that has been finally forfeited and placed in the reserve shall not be sold, with exceptions for court orders, restitution, law-enforcement needs and statutory duties. BNB falls under the stockpile framework instead, where the Treasury secretary has broader authority over responsible stewardship.

That split matters because the latest assets originated from enforcement cases rather than government purchases. EmberCN’s wallet figures capture visible balances, which need not match the official reserve; some coins may still be subject to forfeiture proceedings or restitution claims.

A separate Bitfinex restitution transfer

Coincentral reported a distinct movement the day before: on October 6, 2026, wallets linked to the U.S. Marshals Service sent roughly 264.863 BTC, valued at about $22.87 million, to Coinbase as part of a court-ordered restitution process for the 2016 Bitfinex hack, rather than a sale. A 2025 federal ruling required the seized Bitcoin to be returned to Bitfinex in kind instead of as cash, and Coincentral reported the exchange plans to use it to redeem Recovery Right Tokens and to direct at least 80% of remaining proceeds toward buying back and burning its UNUS SED LEO token.

Coincentral also reported an approximate 8.2 BTC transfer to a Coinbase Prime deposit address in April 2026, and a separate 568 BTC transfer tied to the Potapenko-Turogin case, whose operators sold mining contracts for data centers that did not exist. Authorities recovered about 94,636 BTC from the Bitfinex hack in 2022 following the arrests of Ilya Lichtenstein and Heather Morgan, who received sentences of five years and 18 months respectively.

Why it matters

A transfer to Coinbase Prime is not proof of a sale, so traders watching for government coins hitting the open market have no confirmation here. Coinbase Prime’s dual custody and trading role is precisely what makes the destination ambiguous, and the July transfers carried the same ambiguity.

Crypto.news noted that earlier government Bitcoin transfers to Coinbase were sometimes followed by short-term price declines. In June 2024, roughly 3,940 BTC worth about $240 million connected to Silk Road vendor Banmeet Singh moved to Coinbase Prime and BTC fell about 2%; in August 2024, about 10,000 BTC worth roughly $594 million was sent and Bitcoin dropped 3.6%, though that decline had begun beforehand.

Government authorities have sold seized Bitcoin before. In March 2023, officials sold 9,861 BTC tied to Silk Road for approximately $216 million, a disposal later disclosed in a court filing. That was before the March 2025 executive order barred sales of Bitcoin deposited into the reserve. Crypto.news also reported that government wallets moved seized FTX and Alameda assets worth nearly $984,000 in June, with at least $768,000 reaching Coinbase Prime, which Arkham said was intended for the FTX estate to help repay creditors.

What to watch

Confirming a liquidation would require further wallet activity, a court filing or an official disposal notice, and the September 24 update said the victim-remission process depends on liquidating forfeited assets without linking Wednesday’s transfer to it. Until then, the purpose of the movement remains unconfirmed. This is not financial advice, and cryptocurrency markets are volatile and uncertain.

Disclaimer: This article is for information only and is not investment, financial or trading advice. Cryptocurrency prices are highly volatile. Always do your own research.

Sources: Blockonomi, Crypto.news, Coincentral