US Government Transfers $606,000 in Bitcoin Linked to 2016 Bitfinex Hack to Coinbase

The US government has been active on the blockchain, transferring approximately $606,000 worth of bitcoin to Coinbase Prime. The transferred 8 BTC are linked to Ilya Lichtenstein, the individual behind the decade-old Bitfinex hack. The bitcoin's destination is predetermined by court order, requiring the government to return the coins to Bitfinex rather than liquidating them. The returned funds will be used to redeem all outstanding Recovery Right Tokens and allocate at least 80% of the remaining net proceeds to repurchase and burn the UNUS SED LEO token. The 2016 hack involved Lichtenstein fraudulently authorizing over 2,000 transactions, transferring 119,756 BTC to a wallet under his control, which was worth roughly $72 million at the time. The stolen coins were laundered through crypto mixers, darknets, and chain-hopping before being seized by investigators in 2022. Lichtenstein was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison and released in January 2026. The US government holds bitcoin valued at approximately $24.54 billion, ether at roughly $146 million, and several other cryptocurrencies.