Ross Ulbricht’s Donation Wallet Receives 300 BTC

Ross Ulbricht, the founder of the darknet marketplace Silk Road, received 300 BTC (~$31.4 million) in a single transaction to his donation wallet.

Ross Ulbricht(@RealRossU), the founder of the #SilkRoad marketplace, received 300 $BTC($31.4M) to his donation wallet 8 hours ago.https://t.co/3DEsM9rpBq pic.twitter.com/JoUMNqM99p

— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) June 1, 2025

Commentators are divided over the origin of the substantial donation. Some speculate that the sender might be a Bitcoin enthusiast, appreciating Ulbricht’s role in popularizing cryptocurrency. Others suggest it could be a grateful Silk Road customer.

Robert Clark, co-founder of the Satflow platform, suggested that Ulbricht might be laundering funds he concealed from authorities. His opinion also found support.

Users in the discussion touched upon the topic of blockchain privacy.

“I’m happy for him, but this is one of the problems with Bitcoin — everyone can see how much money you have. It’s not only dangerous but also a bit creepy,” wrote a supporter of the privacy-focused coin Monero.

On January 21, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an order granting full and unconditional pardon to the creator of Silk Road. Ulbricht’s release was one of the promises of the politician’s election campaign.

The entrepreneur was arrested in October 2013. In May 2015, U.S. District Judge Katherine Forrest found him guilty of drug trafficking, conspiracy to transport drugs, hacking computer networks, money laundering, and leading a criminal organization. Ulbricht received a double life sentence without the possibility of parole, of which he served 11 years.

After the entrepreneur’s release from prison, Coinbase’s Director of Product Conor Grogan reported that he discovered 430 BTC in dozens of wallets presumably linked to him. The assets remained untouched for 13 years and were unrelated to the approximately 174,000 BTC seized by authorities from the marketplace.

On May 29, an auction of Ulbricht’s personal belongings concluded, during which he raised approximately $1.8 million in Bitcoin. Items on the Scarce City platform included three inmate IDs, a prison notebook, a locker lock, the clothes and shoes he was released in, and paintings created during his incarceration.

“I left Arizona, the state where I was imprisoned. It’s time to travel. This means shedding the excess and turning the page. […] I don’t need reminders, but I’m sure some of you will be glad to have them,” Ulbricht stated.

At the Bitcoin 2025 conference in Las Vegas, delivering his first speech after release, Ulbricht outlined three principles for the future — “freedom, decentralization, and unity.”