Rumors are circulating among crypto investors that the US government may have quietly sold off nearly 170,000 BTC, leaving a fraction of its assumed holdings intact . The speculation began after the US Marshals Service, in response to a FOIA request, revealed that it currently holds only 28,988 BTC .
However, on-chain data from blockchain analytics firm Arkham Intelligence provides a very different picture. According to Arkham, the US government as a whole still holds approximately 198,000 BTC, worth over $23.46 billion at the current price of Bitcoin . These coins are distributed across various federal agencies and are not limited to the Marshals' holdings .
Even US Senator Cynthia Lummis, a well-known advocate of Bitcoin, responded to the rumor, saying, "I'm alarmed by reports that the U.S. has sold off over 80% of its Bitcoin reserves—leaving just ~29,000 coins" .
The confusion of the US government selling the majority of its Bitcoin holdings appears to stem from misinterpretations of the specific holdings of the US Marshals Service with those of the entire federal government . The FOIA request that sparked the debate was submitted by journalist L0la L33tz, and it accurately reflects that the Marshals control just under 29,000 BTC . However, this only accounts for the Bitcoin under the custody of that particular agency .
Some analysts speculate that the outgoing Joe Biden administration may sell all government-held Bitcoin in a politically motivated decision ahead of Donald Trump's upcoming presidency . Fox Business contributor Jason Williams claimed that the Biden administration is instructing the DOJ to offload thousands of Bitcoin during a bull market, fully aware that the incoming Trump administration may buy them back at higher prices .
Meanwhile, Senator Lummis has reintroduced her bill to create a strategic bitcoin reserve, taking a legislative path towards President Trump's plan for such a reserve . Lummis' bill would create a "decentralized network of secure Bitcoin vaults" operated by the U.S. Treasury Department with set requirements .