Mt. Gox has initiated the process of repaying its creditors by transferring 47,228 BTC, valued at approximately $2.71 billion, from its cold storage to a new wallet.
This move is part of a broader effort to facilitate creditor repayments through designated cryptocurrency exchanges. The transfer has coincided with a dip in Bitcoin’s price below $55,000, marking a significant event in the cryptocurrency market.
What exactly is Mt. Gox?
Mt. Gox, originally a trading card exchange, was converted into a Bitcoin exchange by Jed McCaleb in 2010. It became one of the largest Bitcoin exchanges, handling over 70% of all Bitcoin transactions by 2013. However, Mt. Gox faced numerous security issues, including several hacks that led to significant Bitcoin losses. In 2011, McCaleb sold the exchange to Mark Karpeles.
In February 2014, Mt. Gox suspended trading, closed its website, and filed for bankruptcy, citing the loss of 850,000 Bitcoins (valued at about $450 million at the time). The exchange claimed that these losses were due to a combination of theft through hacking and mismanagement. This incident shook the crypto world, leading to increased scrutiny and regulatory attention.
Over the years, various efforts have been made to recover the lost Bitcoins. In 2018, a trustee appointed by the Tokyo District Court began to liquidate some of Mt. Gox’s remaining assets to compensate creditors. By 2021, around 200,000 Bitcoins had been recovered, and plans for reimbursement were set in motion.
In 2023, Mark Karpeles was found guilty of data manipulation but acquitted of embezzlement. As of 2024, the repayment process to creditors is still ongoing, with many creditors receiving partial reimbursements in Bitcoin and cash, reflecting the prolonged and complex resolution of the Mt. Gox debacle. The incident remains a pivotal moment in the history of cryptocurrency, highlighting the importance of security and regulatory oversight in the crypto ecosystem.
Why does Mt. Gox matter now?
As mentioned above, Mt. Gox has nearly $8B+ in $BTC and Bitcoin Cash to dump into the market to repay their creditors. What this does is add a lot of selling pressure onto the market, causing a dip in the price.
We can see the dip with $BTC standing below $55,000 at the time of writing.
According to reports on X,
Mt. Gox $BTC distribution will happen in 3 phases
– Early payment ( July to Oct )
– Intermediate payment ( Final creditors )
– Final payment ( years later )
So, now just talk about the early payment, which will be 71,403 BTC.
Among them, there are different types of investors:
– Individual creditors
– Credit funds
– Exchanges
$BTC was trading at $600 when Mt. Gox was hacked, and the holders are already up 100x.
