US government moves another $1 billion in Bitcoin as BTC slides $4,000

US government-linked wallets moved over $1 billion in Bitcoin on Oct. 8 as BTC prices fell and more coins reached Coinbase Prime.

On Oct. 8, Galaxy Research flagged the transfer of 12,267 BTC, valued at approximately $1 billion, from a government-controlled address holding assets recovered from the 2016 Bitfinex hack.

The Bitcoin initially moved to an unidentified intermediary wallet before blockchain analyst EmberCN reported that 9,000 BTC, worth about $739 million, had reached Coinbase Prime, Coinbase's institutional trading and custody platform.

The transactions extended three consecutive days of government-linked Bitcoin movements, coinciding with a roughly $4,000 decline in the cryptocurrency's price. During the period, Bitcoin's price fell from about $86,500 when the transfers began late on Oct. 6 to around $82,500 on Thursday, according to EmberCN.

Meanwhile, the timing has renewed concerns about potential government selling.

However, transfers to Coinbase Prime do not prove the Bitcoin was liquidated or that the transactions contributed to the price decline. The platform provides custody and trading services, allowing assets to be deposited without an immediate sale.

The Oct. 8 movement followed substantial transfers that Galaxy Research had documented over the preceding two days.

On Oct. 7, the firm reported that government-linked wallets sent approximately 8,428 BTC to Coinbase Prime, following another 834 BTC the previous day. Together, those transactions involved about 9,261 BTC, valued at roughly $770 million.

Nearly half of those assets originated from Bitcoin recovered following the Bitfinex hack, while another portion was linked to previously identified cryptocurrency seizures involving Binance.

However, Galaxy's analysis also identified 2,456 BTC originating from wallets not previously classified as government holdings.

The researchers attributed those assets to US authorities because they followed the same transfer procedures as known government wallets and reached an identified federal Coinbase Prime deposit address.

The discovery suggests that publicly labeled government wallets may understate how much Bitcoin Washington controls.

Galaxy said the Coinbase Prime deposit address had received approximately 11,567 BTC since its first recorded use in December 2025. About 6,406 BTC came from identified government wallets, while another 5,160 BTC originated from previously unlabeled addresses.

The firm also classified the Oct. 7 activity as the ninth-largest single-day Bitcoin outflow from identified US government wallets since 2013, excluding internal transfers, and the largest since Dec. 2, 2024.

Galaxy estimated that government-attributed wallets held approximately 319,086 BTC in its earlier assessment, down from a peak of 352,587 BTC in August 2024.

The latest movements add to a series of transactions that have raised questions about Washington's cryptocurrency management practices.