DOJ confirms Samourai-forfeited BTC will join US Strategic Bitcoin Reserve

Published: 2026-01-17 00:23:03 |

The U.S. Department of Justice has confirmed that 57.55353 BTC forfeited in the Samourai Wallet case were not sold and will be retained in the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve (SBR) under Executive Order 14233. The clarification followed blockchain activity in November 2025 showing a transfer from a government-controlled address to a Coinbase Prime deposit address, which briefly showed a zero balance and sparked reports that the U.S. Marshals Service had liquidated roughly $6.3 million in Bitcoin. Patrick Witt, Executive Director of the President’s Council of Advisors for Digital Assets, said the DOJ verified the assets remain on the U.S. government balance sheet and will not be sold. The confirmation comes amid broader SBR accumulation: the government now holds roughly 328,372 BTC (about $31.3B), including large forfeitures such as 127,271 BTC seized in October from an alleged Cambodia-based “pig butchering” scam. Building the SBR is a stated priority for the Trump administration; Senator Cynthia Lummis has sponsored legislation to accelerate accumulation toward a one-million-BTC target via budget-neutral methods. Key entities: DOJ, U.S. Marshals Service, Patrick Witt, Samourai Wallet, Coinbase Prime, President’s Executive Order 14233. Implications for traders: the confirmed retention reduces immediate liquidation risk from this incident, supports a continued government-driven centralization of BTC supply, and keeps potential future policy or legislative changes (and large forfeitures) as the main supply-side risks to monitor.

Neutral

The confirmation that 57.55 BTC from the Samourai Wallet forfeiture were not sold is a short-term neutral for BTC price action. Immediate liquidation risk from this specific seizure has been removed, which prevents a small, sudden downward price pressure. However, the broader narrative — continued accumulation of seized BTC into the U.S. Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and large prior forfeitures (eg. 127,271 BTC) — increases government-held supply concentration. That concentration is a medium-to-long-term supply-side factor that can reduce available free float and amplify price moves if policy or liquidation practices change. Traders should treat this news as reducing near-term sell-side risk from this incident but maintaining an elevated watch on future forfeitures, legal developments (Executive Order 14233 enforcement or changes), and legislation (Lummis’ bill) that could alter how seized BTC is handled. For scalpers and short-term traders: negligible immediate impact. For swing and position traders: monitor on-chain custody movements, DOJ/USMS statements, and any legislative progress affecting the SBR because larger, coordinated sales or policy shifts would be the main catalysts for meaningful BTC price movement.