Governments weigh $75B in seized crypto for strategic reserves

Governments consider creating strategic crypto reserves from more than $75 billion in on‑chain assets tied to illicit activity, Chainalysis reports.

Governments are weighing the creation of strategic crypto reserves made up of cryptocurrencies seized from criminals after Chainalysis found more than $75 billion in on‑chain assets linked to illicit activity and within reach of law enforcement. The proposal would let states hold forfeited tokens to support fiscal or strategic goals.

Chainalysis reported that wallets receiving at least 10% of their funds from criminal sources hold more than $60 billion. Administrators and vendors tied to darknet marketplaces control over $40 billion. Bitcoin represents about three‑quarters of the roughly $15 billion held directly by clearly illicit actors; adding Ether and stablecoins increases total balances. Downstream wallets associated with darknet activity have expanded at compound annual rates above 200%.

Jonathan Levin, chief executive of Chainalysis: "This brings asset forfeiture potential to a completely different level to what we've seen in the past. It does change how countries think about that."

Officials say turning the theoretical $75 billion into usable reserves faces obstacles. Tracing and seizing digital assets requires specialized skills, international cooperation and funding. In some cases recovered crypto is retained to fund further investigations, repay victims or cover prosecution costs instead of being added to a central reserve.

Read more: Deutsche Bank: Bitcoin could join Central‑Bank Reserves by 2030

Policy debates have accelerated since a March executive order in the United States directing a digital asset stockpile. Lawmakers and officials in El Salvador, Bhutan, the Czech Republic and Sweden, and some US states, are discussing similar plans. Separately, UK authorities seized about 61,000 Bitcoin from a West London property in 2018, a haul now worth roughly $7 billion.

Governments weigh $75B in seized crypto for reserves