Potential Bitcoin Sale by the U.S. Viewed as a Major Strategic Mistake

Coin Engineers - Executives and observers in the crypto industry have strongly criticized the U.S. government's decision to transfer $1.9 billion worth of Bitcoin to Coinbase.
“This is a major strategic error.”
Jason Lowery, an engineer with the U.S. Space Force, criticized the government’s Bitcoin transfer in a statement on the social media platform X on December 3:
“This is a major strategic error. There is no rational price at which it makes sense for the U.S. to sell Bitcoin it controls. They don’t understand what they have, and that is clearly evident.”
Lowery claimed that this sale could justify a new regulation similar to Executive Order 6102 in the future, stating, “They will look for excuses to buy back the Bitcoin they sold out of ignorance.” Executive Order 6102 was signed in 1933 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to prohibit the accumulation of gold in the U.S.
19,800 Bitcoin transferred
On December 2, the U.S. government transferred approximately 19,800 BTC (worth $1.9 billion) to a Coinbase (NASDAQ:COIN) Prime deposit address.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong echoed Lowery's remarks, stating that the U.S. should not sell Bitcoin.
Crypto educator Toby Cunningham said, “If they are that foolish and sell, the supply will be consumed immediately.” Another observer commented, “Biden will cause as much damage as possible before his term ends.”
This year, the U.S. government has transferred a total of 25,999 BTC (approximately $2.49 billion) to Coinbase. However, according to the analysis platform Spot On Chain, these moves may also involve wallet restructuring rather than sales.
Tether strategy advisor Gabor Gurbacs suggested that the government is consolidating wallets or updating old addresses:
“I haven’t seen any official auction information yet. It’s not guaranteed they will sell; there is a lot we don’t know.”
CryptoQuant Research Director Julio Moreno noted that only 10,000 BTC were sent to Coinbase Prime in recent transfers, likely sold, while the remaining 9,800 BTC were moved to a new address.
The U.S. government holds approximately 183,850 BTC (valued at $17.7 billion) in known addresses.
Bitcoin price impacted
During the transfer, the price of Bitcoin dropped sharply, nearly 3%, down to $94,500. At the time of writing, the asset had recovered to around $96,000.