Government of Bhutan transfers $40M in Bitcoin to QCP Capital

According to the blockchain analytics platform SpotOnChain, on December 9, the Royal Government of Bhutan transferred 402 Bitcoin (BTC) worth 39.56 million dollars to QCP Capital.

This is the latest in a series of transactions by the Bhutanese government, which has been actively selling Bitcoin reserves since October.

Previous transfers and current reserves

According to data from SpotOnChain, the wallet has moved $139 million from 1,696 BTC at the end of October, when the price of Bitcoin rose. These sales, conducted through Binance and QCP Capital, averaged $81,999 per BTC.

Although the government does not disclose the reasons for these transactions, deposits to kriptovalyutnyh currencies are often related to the desire to sell.

This marks the third major Bitcoin transfer by the Bhutanese government this year. In October, he sent 929 BTC worth $66.16 million to Binance in two transactions. These happened shortly after the cryptocurrency surpassed $70,000 for the first time since June.

In early July, data from Arkham showed that the government-linked wallet deposited 381 BTC into Kraken at a time of $24.1 million.

Bhutan holds approximately 11,700 BTC worth $1.15 billion in seven known wallets, making it the fourth-largest holder of government Bitcoin globally. The coins are managed by Druk Holdings and Investments (DHI), the country's government investment arm.

The role of Bitcoin in Bhutan's economy

Unlike many countries that buy Bitcoin through criminal asset forfeiture, Bhutan built its reserves through mining operations from its abundant hydroelectric resources.

Authorities recently started mining in the country in April 2019, when bitcoin was trading at around $5,000. Reserves will account for 26.9 percent of Bhutan's $2.9 billion GDP in 2023, according to the World Bank.

In May 2023, DHI partnered with BitDeer Technologies Group to launch a $500 million fund to boost Bitcoin mining in the country. In the year In April 2024, Bhutan announced plans to expand its mining capacity by 500 MW by mid-2025, bringing its total production capacity to 600 MW.

In addition to mining, Bhutan has explored innovations in digital finance. In the year In 2021, the Royal Monetary Authority (RMA) partnered with Ripple to develop a digital version of the national currency.

According to the country's central bank at the time, this initiative aims to promote digital and cross-border payments and increase financial inclusion.