Bhutan’s Government Transfers $40M in Bitcoin to QCP Capital

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As a seasoned crypto investor with over a decade of experience under my belt, I find the recent transactions by Bhutan’s government intriguing. Having witnessed Bitcoin‘s meteoric rise and fall multiple times, it’s fascinating to see a country like Bhutan, which has built its Bitcoin reserves through mining operations, actively selling off its digital gold.

Based on data from the blockchain analysis platform SpotOnChain, it was reported that the government of Bhutan moved approximately 402 Bitcoins, equivalent to around $39.56 million, to QCP Capital on December 9th.

In recent developments, Bhutan’s administration has continued to offload its Bitcoin holdings, a process that began in October and continues today.

Previous Transfers and Current Reserves

According to SpotOnChain’s data, the wallet in question has transferred approximately 1,696 Bitcoin, worth around $139 million, since late October’s Bitcoin price surge. These transactions, executed via Binance and QCP Capital, were conducted at an average price of roughly $81,999 per BTC.

It’s not clear why these transactions are happening, but typically, funds being moved into cryptocurrency exchanges are linked to plans for selling.

This is the third significant Bitcoin transaction initiated by Bhutan’s government this year. In October, they transferred 929 Bitcoins, worth approximately $66.16 million, to Binance over two transactions. These transfers took place soon after Bitcoin exceeded $70,000 for the first time since June.

In early July, information from Arkham showed that a digital wallet linked to the government transferred approximately 381 Bitcoins, equivalent to around $24.1 million at the time, into the exchange known as Kraken.

Bhutan owns around 11,700 Bitcoins worth about $1.15 billion, spread across seven identified wallets. This makes Bhutan the fourth-largest national Bitcoin owner worldwide. The management of these Bitcoins falls under Druk Holding & Investments (DHI), Bhutan’s state investment entity.

Bitcoin’s Role in Bhutan’s Economy

Contrary to numerous other nations who accumulate Bitcoin from seized criminal assets, Bhutan has amassed its reserves by operating mining activities utilizing the plentiful hydropower resources available to it.

As a crypto investor, I’ve been keeping a close eye on the developments in Bhutan. Officially, they started mining Bitcoin back in April 2019 when its price hovered around $5,000. Fast forward to 2023, and it’s astonishing to see that the reserves have swelled to represent a staggering 26.9% of Bhutan’s total GDP – a whopping $2.9 billion, as per the latest World Bank report.

In May 2023, DHI joined forces with Bitdeer Technologies Group to establish a $500 million fund aimed at increasing Bitcoin mining within the country. By April 2024, Bhutan unveiled its strategy to amplify its mining power by an additional 500 megawatts, which would raise the total capacity to 600 megawatts by mid-2025.

Beyond its mining operations, Bhutan has delved into advancements in digital finance. In the year 2021, the central bank, known as the Royal Monetary Authority (RMA), collaborated with Ripple to create a digital form of its native currency.

Currently, the country’s main monetary authority announced that this project is designed to boost digital and international transactions as well as to foster financial accessibility for all citizens.

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2024-12-09 19:18