New Delhi, July 14 -- WASHINGTON - A decade-old Russian exchange hack, a Los Angeles drug ring, and a 2024 healthcare fraud case converged on Coinbase Prime on Monday, as the U.S. government transferred $288 million in seized cryptocurrency through an institutional custodian. The move creates direct tension with President Trump's March 2025 executive order establishing the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, which prohibits the sale of any Bitcoin held by the federal government. The Department of Justice has not clarified whether Monday's transfer is custody-only or a prelude to liquidation.

The breakdown reflects three entirely separate enforcement timelines. In the Farace case, prosecutors transferred 2,875 Bitcoin, now valued at approximately ...