TLDR
- Mt. Gox moved 33,960 BTC (about $2.25 billion) to BitGo addresses on July 31, 2024.
- The exchange now holds approximately 46,160 BTC, worth about $3 billion.
- Over 17,000 creditors have received repayments in Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash.
- Mt. Gox’s current Bitcoin holdings represent a 76.5% decrease from its recovered amount.
- Recent distributions have not caused significant selling pressure on major exchanges.
We are witnessing the final chapters of the Mt. Gox saga unfold. Once a titan in the Bitcoin exchange arena, Mt. Gox has been steadily working through its rehabilitation process following a devastating hack in 2014.
The exchange has executed another large-scale Bitcoin transfer, moving closer to settling its debts with affected creditors.
On July 31, 2024, blockchain analytics firm Arkham Intelligence reported that Mt. Gox transferred 33,960 BTC, valued at approximately $2.25 billion, to wallet addresses believed to be controlled by BitGo. This digital asset trust company is reportedly the fifth and final custodian assisting Mt. Gox in returning funds to creditors.
UPDATE: MT. GOX MOVES $3.1B BTC
Last night Mt. Gox addresses moved 33.96K BTC ($2.25B) to addresses we believe are most likely BitGo:
bc1q26tsxc0ge7phvcr2kyczexqf5pcj8rk79cqk90h34c30dn9dskeq3gmw3f
bc1q48a5tjhdjtkfv8zv6tj68767h8lgep9dpx0emrkx0yhhmum7wscs95ft36BitGo is the 5th… pic.twitter.com/XWNiZ2boAN
— Arkham (@ArkhamIntel) July 31, 2024
Following this substantial transfer, Mt. Gox’s remaining Bitcoin balance stands at around 46,160 BTC, worth about $3 billion at current market rates. This figure represents a dramatic 76.5% reduction from the total amount of Bitcoin the exchange had recovered since the 2014 hack, which saw the theft of hundreds of thousands of BTC worth about $450 million at the time.
The repayment process has been gaining momentum since June 2024, when Mt. Gox announced it would begin distributing recovered Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash to affected creditors. Nobuaki Kobayashi, the rehabilitation trustee overseeing the process, provided an update on July 24, stating that repayments had already been made to over 17,000 creditors through designated cryptocurrency exchanges.
Despite the large volumes involved, these recent distributions have not appeared to exert significant selling pressure on major exchanges. Analysis of trading data on platforms like Kraken and Bitstamp, which have been used for repayments, showed no notable increase in sell-side activity following the transfers.
The use of multiple custodians and exchanges in the repayment process seems to be part of a strategy to minimize market disruption. This approach appears to be working, as the cryptocurrency market has not shown any extreme reactions to these large-scale movements of Bitcoin.
As Mt. Gox’s Bitcoin holdings continue to dwindle, the end of its repayment plan appears to be on the horizon.
However, the exact timeline for completing all repayments remains unclear. Kobayashi has asked remaining eligible creditors to remain patient as the process continues.
