U.S. General Services Administration
GSA completes fifth cryptocurrency auction in four months
With the swing of a virtual gavel, one lucky bidder won more than 150 litecoin for just over $15,000 during the latest cryptocurrency online sale hosted on GSA Auctions.
Adding to GSA Auctions’ reputation for being a treasure trove of unique items, the property disposal experts with the Personal Property Management Southeast-Great Lakes Zone (PPM SEGLZ) have successfully conducted five separate cryptocurrency auctions in 2021, generating more than $1.1 million in revenue.
“GSA’s cryptocurrency auctions have easily been some of our most bid-upon assets in 2021,” said Dr. Karen Warrior, PPM SEGLZ Director. “With each auction, we’re getting more interest from the public about these unique items available for bid.”
GSA held its very first crypto auction in March 2021, led by PPM specialists Tonya Dillard and Deone McMillian. The two-day auction for a .7501 share of a bitcoin received 204 bids from 31 bidders. Once the dust settled and a winning bid was finally placed, the auction netted $53,104—roughly $9,000 higher than the market value of the unique item at the time of sale.
After that initial success, more than 400 bidders competed in the following four cryptocurrency auctions, placing nearly 1,900 bids for the chance to purchase a portion of the 25.17 bitcoins and 150 litecoins sold to date.
“The response to these auctions has quite simply been unbelievable,” said Thomas Meiron, FAS Regional Commissioner for GSA Region 4. “Our PPM Southeast-Great Lakes team worked extremely hard to make this auction a reality, and that effort certainly turned into a massive success for both the region and GSA as a whole.”
A team effort
Because of its digital nature, the disposal team conducted comprehensive research into cryptocurrency markets and how individual pieces of cryptocurrency transfer from one entity to another in preparation for the auction.
“When we were first approached about disposing of some bitcoin, I honestly knew almost nothing about cryptocurrency, including how they were sold and how they were exchanged,” said Dillard. “It became clear pretty quickly that we needed some expert assistance to get these auctions up and running.”
Getting cryptocurrency listed on GSA Auctions required more collaboration with other GSA offices than what would normally be expected with a physical object. In particular, PPM SEGLZ worked closely to ensure that a digital wallet, which is required to store the cryptocurrency, could be safely and securely used within GSA’s network.
“Whoever first said that there was no ‘i’ in ‘team’ must have had this auction in mind because it was truly a team effort,” said Dillard. “This auction was completely new territory for PPM, and we greatly appreciate the support and assistance we received from the rest of our GSA family. I’m certain this will open the door to more cryptocurrency auctions in the future.”
The success of these auctions and the speed in which they were conducted has already generated significant interest from several other PPM customers looking to dispose of cryptocurrency assets, including the Department of Justice, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Department of Treasury.
“While we treated these like any other federal asset that we auction off day-after-day, what’s made our crypto auctions unique is that there is no tangible asset awarded to the highest bidder,” said Dr. Warrior. “Despite the challenges we faced when we first launched the cryptocurrency disposal pilot, our customers continue to recognize that when it comes to selling surplus federal assets, no one can match the skill and talent of the Personal Property Management Office.”