US government moves 264 Bitcoin worth $23M to Coinbase in Bitfinex restitution

The US government just shifted a chunk of its Bitcoin stash, and no, it doesn’t appear to be dumping it on the market. Roughly 264.8 Bitcoin, worth about $23 million, moved to Coinbase from a government wallet tied to the 2016 Bitfinex hack. The coins look less like a sale and more like a long-delayed homecoming. What moved, and where The transfer took place on October 6, 2026. The more precise figure was approximately 264.863 BTC, valued at around $22.87 million when it moved. This wasn’t the government’s first shipment from this particular pile. In April 2026, smaller transactions sent about 8.2 BTC, worth approximately $606,000, to a Coinbase Prime deposit address. Coinbase Prime is the exchange’s institutional arm, offering custody and trading for large clients. The transfers to Coinbase Prime have been characterized as custody-related steps, not sales. Movement of seized Bitcoin often reflects administrative work under the US Marshals Service rather than liquidation. A court said give it back, not sell it The reason these coins are moving at all traces back to a 2025 federal court ruling. That ruling required the seized Bitcoin to be returned to Bitfinex in-kind as restitution...