Bitcoin lost the $84,000 level on Wednesday as a stronger dollar, elevated US Treasury yields and a jump in oil prices pushed traders away from risk. At the same time, blockchain analytics firms reported that wallets linked to the US government had moved roughly $103 million in seized crypto. Together, the two stories show how macro pressure and government-held supply remain central to the market narrative.
Macro Pressure Pushes Bitcoin Lower
Bitcoin slipped below $84,000 after failing to hold the $85,000 area. Oil climbed on reports of Iranian tanker attacks, Treasury yields stayed elevated and the dollar firmed. That mix typically weighs on assets seen as risky, and crypto reacted quickly. Smaller tokens generally fell harder than Bitcoin, which is common when liquidity thins out.
Leveraged Longs Amplify the Drop
Derivatives made the move sharper. More than $400 million in leveraged long positions was liquidated within a single hour, according to CoinGlass data. Across 24 hours, trackers reported total liquidations above $540 million, with roughly $487 million coming from bullish bets. Such forced selling often accelerates declines, especially when traders are crowded on one side of the market.
US Government Wallets Move $103 Million
On Tuesday, on-chain trackers including Arkham flagged transfers from wallets linked to the US government. About 833.6 BTC, worth roughly $71.56 million, went through two unlabeled addresses and landed at deposit addresses identified as Coinbase Prime. Separately, around 40,285 BNB, worth about $31.63 million, moved to a fresh wallet through intermediary addresses.
According to analysts, roughly 568.7 BTC trace back to the Potapenko and Turogin forfeiture case, while about 264.9 BTC come from the Bitfinex hack recovery. The BNB originates from assets seized in the Alameda Research and FTX cases.
Does a Coinbase Prime Deposit Mean a Sale?
Not necessarily. Coinbase Prime is an institutional platform that provides both custody and trading, and it has been used for managing federal digital assets. A deposit there is not proof of a sale, and no sale has been confirmed.
Context also matters. A March 2025 executive order states that bitcoin deposited into the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve should not be sold, while other forfeited assets may fall under separate rules. The $103 million moved equals about 0.38% of the roughly $27.5 billion in seized crypto that Arkham attributes to US government-linked wallets, and the market reaction to the transfers was relatively muted.
What Traders Are Watching Next
Attention now turns to the minutes of the Federal Reserve's September meeting. Traders were pricing only about a 20.5% chance of a rate hike in October, so any shift in tone could move yields and, in turn, crypto. On the chart, the $83,000 zone is the support to watch, while $85,000 is the level Bitcoin failed to reclaim.
For investors, the takeaway is simple: crypto is trading as a macro asset in the short term, and further government wallet activity will be tracked closely. This article is for informational purposes only and is not financial advice.
