US government moves 10k BTC linked to SilkRoad; Mike Novogratz believes spot Bitcoin ETFs will be approved; Google optimistic towards NFT and tokenized digital assets
A US Department of Justice-linked crypto wallet carried 9,825.25 Bitcoins worth approximately $299 million.
It is not clear at this time whether transactions that appear to have been made with the wallet are in the custody of the Ministry of Justice.
In the first place, 9,825 of Silk Road linked BTCs were moved in a pair of transactions sent to three addresses. Most of the assets (8200 BTC) were sent to a single address. The rest was divided into 101 separate addresses.
The US government had previously announced that BTCs obtained from Silk Road would be disposed of.
According to on-chain data, US-linked wallets made more than $200 million in profits in bulk transactions.
There is currently speculation about transactions made to more than 800 wallets. The government’s highly dispersed disposal of money also makes it difficult to track.
Mike Novogratz believes spot Bitcoin ETFs will be approved
Mike Novogratz is optimistic that spot Bitcoin ETFs will be approved.
Galaxy Digital founder Novogratz expects the Bitcoin price to rise by the end of the year. However, he believes the US will also approve a spot Bitcoin ETF.
Speaking to Bloomberg TV, Novogratz said that the BTC price is currently consolidating between $28,000 and $32,000.
Novogratz also pointed out that the price of the leading cryptocurrency could go higher when the Fed stops interest rate hikes.
Bitcoin posted an 18% gain in the past month on the backdrop of BlackRock’s spot Bitcoin ETF application. The asset has increased by 84% since the beginning of 2023.
Novogratz added:
“People made a lot of money. That’s why there’s some supply pressure today.”
Bitcoin ETF pending approval
Novogratz said that spot Bitcoin ETF approval is likely to happen. According to him, companies like BlackRock and Invesco will play an important role in the adoption of Bitcoin by the masses.
Novogratz said that if a spot Bitcoin ETF were approved, both the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the government would have confirmed that Bitcoin is an asset.
Answering a question about whether Galaxy Digital will be listed in the US, Novogratz noted that this is a long and frustrating process.
The company, which was previously listed in Toronto, is now working to be listed on the Nasdaq.
Google optimistic towards NFT and tokenized digital assets
Google has made a move to change its policy towards digital assets.
Google has updated its mobile software policy so that app developers can integrate digital assets like NFT into their games through Google’s app store.
Joseph Mills, Google’s group product manager, said apps should be transparent to their users regarding tokenized digital assets. Additionally, he stated that the developers cannot encourage a potential profit.
Assets that do not comply with Google Play’s policy will not be allowed. For example, money will not be accepted for NFT earning opportunities.
Changes can be applied at the end of the year
According to the developers, Google’s new policy will go through a testing phase before it’s available to all developers. Taking into account the duration of this testing phase, it is estimated that the implementation of the new decisions taken may take place in late 2023.
Matt Williamson, an engineering manager at a social news site, said that Google took help from Reddit when updating its policies.Reddit has been an active player in the crypto industry for a long time.
Google is considering working with various industry partners to increase its support for blockchain-based applications in the future.
While Google is pursuing new expansions in digital assets, Apple continues to attract the reaction of the crypto money industry by placing additional fees on NFT sales.
Although Apple has taken a step towards NFTs, only Apple Pay can be used during purchases.
After Google’s move, it is also a matter of curiosity whether Apple will make a similar move.
