US government sends $288M to Coinbase putting Bitcoin reserve rules into question
U.S. government-tagged wallets moved 3,941 BTC and 30,007 ETH, worth about $288 million, to Coinbase Prime over roughly eight hours. Coinbase Prime serves both custody and trading functions for government crypto, so the transfer could reflect consolidation, administration, or preparation for disposal. A March 2025 executive order says Bitcoin placed in the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve cannot be sold, but that rule applies only to a narrower class of reserve-eligible BTC that is finally forfeited and meets legal requirements. ETH follows a separate path: finally forfeited non-Bitcoin assets go to the U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile, where Treasury must manage them under law. The public data only confirms movement into Coinbase Prime. It does not show whether the BTC entered reserve accounts, whether any sale occurred, or what happened to the ETH. Proof of a sale would require official agency, court, or custodian records.
