Draper plans to use the bitcoin to help grow one of his bitcoin portfolio companies, Vaurum. Only 20% of the bitcoin that was seized by the Marshall Service was sold to Draper, which is now worth about $19 million.
But the winner, the venture capitalist Tim Draper, is not seeking a quick hit. Instead, through a partnership with the Bitcoin exchange start-up Vaurum, Mr. Draper intends to make the coins available for use in emerging markets. “With the help of Vaurum and this newly purchased Bitcoin, we expect to be able to create new services that can provide liquidity and confidence to markets that have been hamstrung by weak currencies,” Mr. Draper said in a statement through Vaurum. “We want to enable people to hold and trade Bitcoin to secure themselves against weakening currencies.”