Bitcoin Exchange itBit says it won part of bitcoin auction
NEW YORK (Reuters) – – Bitcoin exchange itBit on Tuesday said it had won part of the U.S. government’s third auction of bitcoins seized from Ross Ulbricht, who was convicted last month of operating black market website Silk Road.
The company said it won 3,000 of the 50,000 bitcoins auctioned last week by the U.S. Marshals Service. The Marshals Service said earlier on Tuesday there are two other unidentified winners, which took 27,000 and 20,000 coins respectively. In late trading on Tuesday, bitcoin was up 1.8 percent at $292.19. That put the value of the 50,000 bitcoins auctioned at $14.6 million. ItBit was founded in 2012 as a global exchange for institutional and retail investors. It has offices in New York and Singapore.
Last week’s auction attracted 34 bids from 14 registered bidders. That was more than the last bitcoin auction in December when just 11 buyers submitted 27 bids.
The first auction in June attracted 45 bidders and 63 bids.
(Reporting by Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss; Editing by Andrew Hay)