Small BTC Transfer Sparks Fears Over Trump's 'Never Sell' Reserve

The US government recently moved a small amount of Bitcoin from Alameda Research's Binance.US accounts, reviving concerns that Washington might be preparing to liquidate more of its forfeited Bitcoin stash.

President Donald Trump's March 2025 executive order created the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, which 'shall not be sold' and turned qualifying forfeited BTC into a long-term Treasury asset. The order also permits agency heads to dispose of government-controlled digital assets under specific exceptions.

The transferred coins were part of roughly $53.6 million worth of seized Bitcoin from Alameda's accounts, split between 657.92 BTC in one account and 24.4135385 BTC in another. These coins sit inside an $11 billion forfeiture order tied to Alameda's collapse, and the Department of Justice has already drawn on that order to pay victims directly.

The movement is seen as a test for whether Alameda's native-BTC can finally be forfeited and folded into the reserve under Trump's order or disbursed to victims under the restitution process. If it resolves into liquidation for restitution purposes, it could add another entry to the accounting gap between trackers estimating US-controlled Bitcoin.