The US Marshals Service is looking at a $20 million payday as it auctions off 50,000 bitcoins seized from alleged Silk Road kingpin Ross Ulbricht, otherwise known as Dread Pirate Roberts.
The coins will be sold off in ten lots of 2000 units and ten more of 3000. Buyers will have to place a deposit of $100,000 for the 2000-unit lots and $150,000 for the larger pots.
It is the second time the Feds have sought to offload bitcoins seized from last year's Silk Road bust. In the first auction, back in July, 30,000 coins were sold in a single lot to venture capitalist Tim Draper.
The value of bitcoins has dropped considerably since then, from $600 to somewhere closer to the $400 mark at today's prices.
The funds generated from the sale will sit in an escrow account until the case against Ulbricht is decided. If he is found not guilty, he will be free to take possession of the cash raised.