The US government has officially said that more than $11 billion in seized Bitcoin would be returned to its rightful owners. Indeed, according to a recent filing, officials said that the 120,000 BTC that was seized in relation to the 2016 Bitfinex hack should be returned as “in-kind restitution.”
At the time of the theft, the stolen cryptocurrencies were worth around $70 million. With the asset surging in value over recent years, the compromised Bitcoin tokens are worth far more. Moreover, in November of last year, the man responsible for the hack was sent to prison. Indeed, he received a five-year prison sentence, according to a press release from the US Justice Department.
JUST IN: 🇺🇸 US Government says 120,000 seized Bitcoin worth $11.87 billion from Bitfinex hack should be returned to its rightful owners.
— Watcher.Guru (@WatcherGuru) January 15, 2025
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US Government Says 120,000 Seized BTC Should be Returned to Rightful Owners
In 2016, the attack on Bitfinex was among the biggest cryptocurrency thefts. Now, almost nine years later, it remains one of the biggest tragedies the industry has faced. Late last year, Ilya Lichtenstein, the person responsible for the attack, had been sentenced for their involvement in the attack.
Now, there has been a crucial development regarding what to do with the cryptocurrency funds that were seized. According to a recent court filing shared on X (formerly Twitter), the US government has said that the $11.87 billion in seized Bitcoin from the Bitfinex hack should be returned to its rightful owners.
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In the conclusion of the filing, the US writes, “such voluntary restitution should include all of the assets seized from the Bitfinex Hack Wallet and that, pursuant to the plea agreements, those assets should be returned to Bitfinex as in-kind restitution.”
Conversely, the US government is one of the largest holders of Bitcoin in the world. Indeed, country holds more than $20 billion worth of the leading cryptocurrency, according to Arkham Intelligence data. Most of those assets were seized from the Silk Road Marketplace.
