Coinbase Maintenance Schedule Could Have Been Behind the $3 Billion Worth of BTC Transfers Last Week

The first week of December saw one single user send 856,000 bitcoins in batches of 8,000 to 107 separate wallets. This caused quite a stir in the community, as that figure is worth nearly $3 billion.

Several theories have been proposed as to the identity of the user. Publication 8btc, after digging into the matter, has made the link to Coinbase, and that all of the 850,000 or so bitcoins belong to Coinbase and its users.

This is somewhat corroborated by a Coinbase statement made earlier in a blog post:

In the next seven days, Coinbase will perform regular maintenance on our platform, which may result in the movement of all blockchains (assets) supported by Coinbase. These activities are controlled and closely monitored, with the aim of Provide better security for our customers…

The furor began when users pointed to a wallet, inactive since 2014, that sent over 66,000 BTC to 100 different wallets. This was followed by another wallet sending a similar amount to 101 wallets. Eventually, this movement of 856,000 BTC occurred.

While there is no definitive proof that Coinbase was behind the move, it is highly likely.

Coinbase Expanding Business as 2019 Looms

Coinbase has had a phenomenal year in terms of exposure, greatly expanding the number of users on its platform and the number of tokens available.

Recently, they even released a list of 31 tokens that were under consideration for listing, which included Stellar, EOS, and OmiseGO. Speculation also abounds about the possibility of XRP being listed.

In other news, Coinbase has also revealed a festive announcement schedule called “12 Days of Coinbase,” where they make a new announcement everyday. The first of these announcements was made yesterday and involved users being able to purchase e-gift cards for various fashion, food and drink, and services through crypto funds stored in Coinbase wallets.

The second of these, announced today, allows users to donate cryptocurrency to a charitable fund aimed at aiding Venezuelan families via GiveCrypto.

Coinbase is among the many exchanges competing for global dominance, and the exchange business has itself become a tight race with plenty to compete for.

Coinbase is in a good position to gain a significant foothold in the global market, as many tokens vye for its large userbase and brand name. 2019 ought to bring several more token listings and features to the platform.