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Investor Tim Draper Not Bidding in Today’s Silk Road Auction

Two-time auction winner Tim Draper has revealed to CoinDesk that he is not participating in today’s auction of more than 44,000 BTC.

By Pete Rizzo
AccessTimeIconNov 5, 2015 at 4:21 p.m. UTC
Updated Sep 14, 2021 at 2:00 p.m. UTC
tim draper
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Two-time auction winner Tim Draper has revealed to CoinDesk that he is not participating in today’s auction of more than 44,000 BTC confiscated from convicted Silk Road operator Ross Ulbricht.

The venture capitalist and Draper Fisher Jurvetson (DFJ) partner was the sole winner of the first US government auction of nearly 30,000 BTC (then valued at roughly $18m) held last July, again purchasing 2,000 BTC (worth $750,000) in an auction of 50,000 BTC held in December 2014.

Though short in his remarks, Draper told CoinDesk that he "didn’t participate" in today’s auction, which is scheduled to conclude at 18:00 UTC.

Draper did not elaborate on any reasons underpinning the decision.

Confirmed participants

in the auction so far include bitcoin hedge fund Binary Financial and over-the-counter bitcoin trading firm Genesis Trading. Major US bitcoin exchanges including Coinbase, Gemini and itBit have stated that they are not participating or declined to comment on their involvement in the sale.

Representatives of the US Marshals Service (USMS), the government agency overseeing the auction, did not respond to requests for clarity as to when any winner in today’s auction could be expected to be announced.

Draper was, however, optimistic about the recently rising price of bitcoin in his remarks, concluding his email by writing:

”How about that BITCOIN?”

Disclosure

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CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by the Bullish group, owner of Bullish, a regulated, digital assets exchange. The Bullish group is majority-owned by Block.one; both companies have interests in a variety of blockchain and digital asset businesses and significant holdings of digital assets, including bitcoin. CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary with an editorial committee to protect journalistic independence. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive options in the Bullish group as part of their compensation.

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