US Government Moves $1.9M in Seized Alameda Altcoins to Coinbase Prime
The US government transferred approximately $1.9 million in altcoins seized from Alameda Research to Coinbase Prime on Wednesday, according to on-chain tracker Arkham Intelligence. The batch included Render (RNDR), Uniswap (UNI), The Sandbox (SAND), Mask Network (MASK), and Axie Infinity (AXS), with most value in RNDR and UNI. The funds originated from wallets the Department of Justice seized in January 2023 during civil forfeiture actions against three Alameda accounts on Binance, part of the broader FTX collapse case that has yielded over $11 billion in forfeitures. Coinbase Prime, the exchange's institutional arm, is used for custody and structured sales by government agencies. Past USG transfers to the platform have preceded both custody changes and liquidations. However, the $1.9 million transfer is a tiny fraction of the government's total crypto holdings, which Arkham lists at $27 billion, dominated by 328,361 BTC worth $26.6 billion. The DOJ's Asset Forfeiture Program typically liquidates non-core altcoins before bitcoin, which it treats as a longer-term reserve. Market reactions on X viewed the move as routine asset management rather than an imminent sell signal, noting it is "pocket change" for the US government.
Key facts
- US government transferred $1.9M in altcoins from Alameda seizure to Coinbase Prime.
- Tokens moved: RNDR, UNI, SAND, MASK, AXS, sourced from 2023 DOJ forfeiture.
- Transfer revived speculation but seen as routine management given $27B total holdings.
- DOJ typically liquidates altcoins before BTC, which is held as long-term reserve.