Key dealers
- The US Marshals service missed a deadline to report to Senator Cynthia Lummis on Bitcoin line from the Silk Road Fall.
- Senator Lummis raised concerns about the planned sale of $ 69,370 Bitcoin, worth approximately $ 7 billion, citing a potential 98% loss of value.
US Marshals Service (USMS) missed a Friday deadline to provide detailed information about its handling of Bitcoin, which was seized from the Silk Road Fall to Senator Cynthia Lummis, a development that source with knowledge of the matter had indicated.
Senator Lummis, in a letter To USMS last month, caused concern about the agency’s planned sale of approximately $ 69,370 seized Bitcoin, valued at approximately $ 7 billion at the current market price. She quoted potential financial losses for taxpayers and a conflict with the Trump administration’s political directive.
Lummis letter to USMS emphasized the agency’s previous Bitcoin sales and noted that divestments of 195,092 Bitcoin between 2014 and 2023 generated approximately $ 366 million. The same holding would be worth over $ 18.9 billion at current market prices, which represents what Lummis called a “staggering 98% loss in potential value.”
The letter also noted a new court submission in which the Ministry of Justice quoted Bitcoin Price Volatility to motivate a quick sale. She thought the department’s aggressive The pursuit of liquidationDespite waiting for legal challenges, worrying, especially during the president’s transition period.
The letter required greater openness in USMS’s management of bitcoin assets, including the publication of holdings. It also tried to keep the agency responsible for previous losses and ensure better decisions in the future.
When the letter was published, there was a widespread expectation in the crypto community that Trump would issue an executive order (EO) to set up a national Bitcoin warehouse, an important promise from his presidential campaign.
January 23 signed EO Directs a working group to assess the feasibility of creating a national digital asset storage.
Although the order does not meet the specific promise of a dedicated Bitcoin reserve, it leaves the ability that Bitcoin may be part of a warehouse if it is established, which can potentially include Bitcoin and other crypto assets seized by federal authorities.
USMS, which monitors digital assets seized during criminal investigations, handles a loss program for assets valued at approximately $ 7.6 billion from September 2024.
While the agency missed the deadline, said a person who is familiar with the thing that it would inform lummy and her staff in the coming weeks and provide an inventory of their Bitcoin holdings.
Senator Lummis has been appointed Chairman of the newly formed Senate Bank Committee for digital assets. This sub -committee is the first of its kind, dedicated to monitor digital assets under the Senate Bank Committee, now led by Senator Tim Scott.
The sub -committee aims to adopt two -party legislation that establishes a comprehensive legal framework for digital assets. This framework is intended to promote responsible innovation at the same time as consumers protect and include regulations for market structure, stablecoins and a strategic bitcoin reserve.
Lummis briefly led an attempt to create an American strategic Bitcoin reserve through proposed legislation called Bitcoin Act, which would make it possible for the government to acquire one million bitcoins, about 5% of the total supply.
The bill was dead on January 3, 2025, but if she plans to reintroduce on 2025, it could benefit from support from the newly elected crypt -friendly administration.
