Can I cashout 25 BTC without proof of provenance?
<p>Back when Bitcoin was worth under 10 USD, a friend sent me 25 BTC as a gift.</p>

<p>Since that time, I moved them around different wallets and don't believe I still have the original wallet where I received them. I also don't have any hard proof that they were received as a gift (it was just worth about 250$ at the time).</p>

<p>I'm worried about AML laws. If I understand correctly, the wire transfer from the Bitcoin exchange (e.g. Coinbase) to my bank account could be deemed suspect and I would be required to provide proof of the provenance of the funds (reverse burden of proof). As I don't have such proof, I could potentially lose all the money and go to jail.</p>

<p>Are my worries legitimate? Let's say I withdraw them successfully, how long do the AML people have to investigate (e.g. is there a statute of limitation)?</p>

<p>PS: I'd be withdrawing to either my US or Canadian bank (I'm a Canadian citizen).</p>

<p>PS 2: I have previously shared that problem elsewhere and was told "why are worried if you didn't do anything illegal?". What worries me is that in case of AML, it seems that the prosecutor doesn't have to prove that a crime was committed.</p>

<p>Your last paragraph asks for legal advice which is off topic here; you should talk to a lawyer. Having said that:</p>

<ul>
<li><p>You may not be able to prove you owned the BTC when they were only worth 250 USD, but how far back <em>can</em> you prove you owned them? If you can show you have held them for a while it strengthens your claim.</p></li>
<li><p>Can you get your friend to testify about giving you the BTC? This is actually likely to be more help. Using software to prove you controlled the wallet that originally received the coins will require an independent expert to testify about it, but your friend can just give testimony that he gave you the BTC on or around a certain date. That is evidence just as much as your wallet.</p></li>
</ul>

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