Bitcoin: China sold BTC worth $100K in January, claims Peter Schiff – Here’s why

• U.S. Bitcoin adoption speculation rises, but Bloomberg estimates only a 30% chance in 2025.
• Reports suggest China may have secretly sold $20 billion in seized Bitcoin holdings.

Bitcoin [BTC]’s dominance in 2025 has surged, fueled by President Donald Trump’s election victory and growing speculation about U.S. government adoption.

Reports suggest that Washington may consider adding Bitcoin to its strategic reserves, though Bloomberg estimates only a 30% likelihood of such a move this year.

Nevertheless, the idea has sparked intense debate, with Senator Cynthia Lummis claiming that a U.S. Bitcoin acquisition could provoke geopolitical competition, particularly with China.

Peter Schiff’s bold claims

However, the crypto community was left puzzled when longtime Bitcoin critic Peter Schiff responded to the X (formerly Twitter) post and said, 

“Actually, it’s likely the Chinese government already sold that Bitcoin in January, above $100k. What makes you think they still own it.” 

For those unaware, China’s Bitcoin holdings have come under scrutiny following reports that the government may have offloaded nearly $20 billion worth of BTC.

According to CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju, these assets were originally seized from the 2019 PlusToken Ponzi scheme, which defrauded investors of billions.

Ju suggests that approximately 194,000 BTC was gradually liquidated through exchanges like Huobi.

While Chinese authorities previously claimed the confiscated crypto was transferred to the national treasury, they never clarified whether it was sold or retained, fueling speculation about the scale of the liquidation and its impact on the market.

Referring to this, Schiff further added, 

“In Jan. @CynthiaMLummis said that she thought China would get into the equivalent of an arms race with the U.S. over which nation could buy the most Bitcoin. I doubt it, especially if China was smart enough to have sold all of its Bitcoin during that month.”

Global powers and their stance on Bitcoin

Despite Bitcoin’s growing prominence in global finance, major economies hesitate to incorporate it into their reserves.

Bitcoin Treasuries data shows that China holds the second-largest government Bitcoin stash, trailing only the U.S.

However, Japan and South Korea remain skeptical, showing little interest in diversifying their reserves with Bitcoin.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin struggles to stay above $90K, recently dropping 0.45% to $84,333.20 in the past 24 hours, according to CoinMarketCap.

This shows that short-term Bitcoin holders face mounting unrealized losses, marking a pivotal moment in the market cycle.

Historical trends indicate these phases act as temporary cooldowns rather than long-term reversals.

While the pressure builds, the correction has yet to reach an extreme level.

Therefore, if Bitcoin holds key psychological support and macroeconomic conditions remain favorable, this downturn could serve as a reset before the next bull run.