The gain of 300 bitcoins of Ross Ulbricht was revealed as not being a self-dying, according to the detective Blockchain Zachxbt. The transfer, worth around $ 31.4 million, arrived in the Ulbricht donation portfolio and quickly sparked online speculation.
In short
- 300 bitcoins, worth $ 31.4 million, were recently sent to the Ulbicht donation portfolio.
- Analyst Zachxbt says that these 300 BTCs come from a blender, probably a donation, not from the personal bitcoins of Ulbricht.
- Ulbricht has sold personal objects at auction, collecting more than 11 BTC, including a prison identification card sold for 5.5 BTC.
Decryption of the mystery surrounding the donation of 300 bitcoins to Ross Ulbricht
Even after spending 12 years in prison for the management of Silk Road, a black market on the Dark Web using Bitcoin for payments, the name Ulbricht continues to attract attention. He was arrested in 2013 and sentenced in 2015 to a double sentence to perpetuity over 40 years. In January, he was released after receiving a grace from President Donald Trump.
Now this surprise transfer to Bitcoin has rekindled the debate on the possibility that Ulrbricht has hidden crypto reserves since his days on Silk Road. But Zachxbt's analysis suggests the opposite. He explained that bitcoins came from a centralized mixture called Jamble. According to him, this service is much less popular than decentralized tools such as Wasabi or Samurai, and often arouses concerns in terms of compliance.
Blockchain activity suggests an external source
Zachxbt has taken a closer look at the trace of the donation of 300 bitcoins and discovered two wallet addresses that have been inactive for years. The two portfolios suddenly became active between April and May 2025 and have deposited large sums in Jamble at the same time as the Ulbricht donation wallet received bitcoins.
He also noted that one of the addresses had previously been reported by compliance monitoring tools due to suspicious activities linked to exchange platforms in 2019. These findings suggest that the one who sent the funds has kept the parts for a long time, having moved them only recently.
Questioned by another user about the efforts made to trace the funds, Zachxbt explained that he had intervened because many wrongly accused Ulbricht of having sent himself the gift. According to his words, the blockchain evidence clearly show that someone else made the transfer when Ross had no access to any of these portfolios.
Ancient Ulbicht portfolios remain inactive
In January, Conor Grogan de Coinbase had pointed out that around 430 bitcoins – worth $ 47 million – had remained intact for more than 13 years in portfolios linked to Ulbricht, dating from the early era of Silk Road, as indicated in His detailed tweet.
He explained that these portfolios probably owned only small sums at the time – so weak that they were easy to ignore and were not confiscated. But over time, the value of Bitcoin having increased, their value has climbed up to millions. No part has moved since Ulbricht's arrest.
Supporting Grogan's conclusions, Arkham Intelligence, a blockchain analysis company, traced at least 14 addresses linked to Silk Road. One of them held more than $ 9 million in Bitcoins. These portfolios have also shown no sign of recent activity, strengthening the conviction that Ulrbricht has not moved funds.
Prison objects are very expensive
Ulbricht has recently sold personal effects of his time in prison and the years preceding his arrest at the auction. The sale brought in more than $ 1.8 million in Bitcoin.
The objects went from a sleeping bag and a backpack with a drum, notebooks, and even its prison identification card. This card was sold for more than 5.5 bitcoins, with fans and collectors who made offers. The sale also included paintings he had made in prison, all of this detailed in the Ross Ulbicht collection.
I decided to auction certain personal objects before my arrest and my time in prison. I do not need these memories and I am sure that some of you will like to have them.
Ross Ulbricht
The feelings remain shared about Ulbricht. Some see him as someone involved in an illegal activity for lucrative purposes, while others consider him a scapegoat of an uncomfortable system with decentralized platforms and digital anonymity. This belief is probably what pushes a lot to make donations in its support.
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