Finland is currently looking for cryptocurrency brokers to assist in the sale of bitcoin used in criminal activities.
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Finland has announced that it is currently looking for reputable brokers to assist in the sale of seized bitcoin. The bitcoin in question has been confiscated due to illegal activities within the country.
Currently, Finnish Customs holds approximately 1,981 bitcoin, which at the time of writing is worth $82 million.
Director of financial management, Pekka Pylkkanen, explained that the use of a broker will allow for a safe and reliable method of selling cryptocurrencies. The country will look to add up to three brokers in a two-year agreement. Finnish authorities are looking to pay between €250,000 and €2 million to the selected brokers. The prices depend on the likelihood of more seizures in the future.
Seized bitcoin from 2016 now worth $82M
The majority of seized bitcoin is reported to come from Finnish drug dealer Douppikauppa. The bust saw Finnish authorities confiscate 1,666 bitcoin from Douppikauppa, which makes up a large portion of the funds currently held by Finnish Customs. The confiscation of BTC occurred in 2016.
However, due to concerns of bitcoin falling back into the hands of potential criminals, Finland decided to hold onto the cryptocurrency. “The main aim of Finnish Customs is to make sure the cryptocurrencies are sold securely, preventing further money laundering and criminal activities,” the authority said in a statement.
The surge in bitcoin pricing now means that the original stack of bitcoin has sky-rocketed in price. Authorities are now looking to liquidate bitcoin as its total price has reached $82 million in value.
According to previous reports, Russia and Finland crypto exchanges receive the most illegal funds. CipherTrace had previously revealed that Finland held the title of being the preferred destination for illegal cryptocurrency for three years running.
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