The US government will auction another 2,170 Bitcoins worth more than $24 million

2,170 Bitcoins, valued at over $24 million, are going up for auction. The U.S. Marshals Service is planning to sell these digital assets confiscated in federal crime cases. Given that Bitcoin’s value is expected to continue to grow, this could be a lucrative opportunity for investors to be able to buy Bitcoin over-the-counter safely and securely.

The highest bidder wins Bitcoin  

The U.S. Marshals Service has announced that they will be auctioning off approximately 2,170 Bitcoins, currently valued at over $24 million, that were seized in federal crimes this month. The crimes listed are mostly related to administrative forfeitures by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which include drug-related crimes.

The bitcoins will be divided into 14 parts, consisting of 70 bitcoins, 100 bitcoins or 500 bitcoins. To participate in the auction, individuals must pay a deposit of $200,000 and complete all required registration forms before March 14.

Winning bidders will be notified by March 19, but the announcement noted that "the complexity of the review process" could lead to delays.

Screening bidders’ Bitcoin addresses  

Due to Bitcoin’s current lack of fungibility, the auction terms state that receiving addresses provided by bidders will be thoroughly screened to ensure they have not been exposed to malicious activity.

The U.S. Marshals Service will not transfer these Bitcoins to a dirty Bitcoin public address, or a public address from a country that is clearly restricted by the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), or a public address that is clearly associated with terrorism, other criminal activity, or activity hostile to the United States.

In addition, it should be noted that buyers must pay the transaction fees required to purchase these bitcoins. Considering that Bitcoin transaction fees have dropped significantly in the past few weeks, it should not be too troublesome.

The US government continues to auction Bitcoin  

This would not be the first time the U.S. government has auctioned off bitcoins obtained from federal cases. Earlier this year, approximately 3,813 bitcoins were auctioned off by the federal government and purchased by five bidders.

Back in 2014 and 2015, the U.S. government auctioned off bitcoins seized in the case of Silk Road, a notorious dark web marketplace.

At that auction, venture capitalist and Bitcoin supporter Tim Draper paid just $19 million for 29,655 Bitcoins, which are now worth more than $320 million—not a bad return for an investment of just two or three years.

Given the regulatory process involved and the investment returns from the last auction, it would not be surprising if a large number of people with large net worth flocked to this auction.