Key Takeaways
- Germany offered 49,858 Bitcoin at a median value of $57,900 in 2024.
- The missed revenue from holding the Bitcoin totals $2.35 billion.
- The Bitcoin was seized from Movie2k, a defunct piracy web site.
The German authorities forfeited a $2.3 billion acquire by promoting almost 50,000 Bitcoin in mid-2024, based on blockchain analytics agency Arkham.
The federal government-labeled pockets, linked to the Bundeskriminalamt (BKA), offered 49,858 Bitcoin for a complete of $2.89 billion, averaging $57,900 per coin in a sequence of transactions throughout June and July.
Bitcoin’s worth surge
As of Might 19, 2025, Bitcoin has surged over 80% because the sale, reaching above $104,700. Arkham famous that the stash would now be value $5.24 billion had it been held.
Arkham posted on X:
If they’d held it, their BTC would now be value $5.24B.
Origin of the seized Bitcoin
The Bitcoin was initially seized from Movie2k, a now-defunct movie piracy web site.
Hypothesis over the sell-off started on June 19, 2024, when the pockets moved 6,500 BTC—then value $425 million—to exchanges.
Criticism of liquidation methodology
Miguel Morel, CEO of Arkham, criticized the tactic of liquidation.
Morel urged the strategy indicated a rush for liquidity
He stated:
The very last thing I’d have anticipated is that they might simply go to 5 completely different exchanges and begin market promoting.
Market affect
Stories of the sale coincided with market uncertainty and should have exacerbated downward value motion.
Nevertheless, Bitcoin rebounded above $60,000 on July 14, shortly after the pockets was emptied, serving to restore market confidence.