Bitcoin
Defunct cryptocurrency exchange Mt. Gox to return $9 billion in Bitcoin
A cryptocurrency exchange that went bankrupt a decade ago due to a hack is preparing to repay $9 billion in Bitcoin this month, raising concerns among investors about its potential impact on the price of Bitcoin.
Apple has fixed several security issues in its devices this year
Tokyo-based Mt. Gox, formerly the world’s largest Bitcoin exchange, is set to return over 140,000 Bitcoins to victims of the 2014 hack. According to a JPMorgan analyst, the cryptocurrency market could face downward pressure in July due to a potential sell-off by Mt. Gox creditors. CoinDesk reported. Creditors who will receive Bitcoin can sell them as soon as they receive them, according to the report.
Matt HouganBitwise Asset Management CIO believes the release of locked Bitcoin from the Mt. Gox fund will only be a short-term negative for Bitcoin. “Based on the long-term positive trends, I think Bitcoin should already be trading at all-time highs. It’s not because the short-term negatives are weighing on the price,” Hougan said in an email to Quartz.
“From where I stand, this looks like an opportunity.”
He predicts that Bitcoin, which is currently trading between $50,000 and $70,000, will move in the positive direction as the US elections and fall shopping season approach.
On Monday morning, Bitcoin was hovering around $62,000, up 2% from yesterday. A few days ago, the leading cryptocurrency experienced one of the worst weeks of 2024.
The Mt. Gox hack was one of the first major attacks on cryptocurrencies. In 2011, hackers got away with 25,000 Bitcoins valued at around $400,000. The exchange handled nearly 70% of all Bitcoin transactions at that time.
In 2014, Mt. Gox suffered another attack, which resulted in the loss of nearly 650,000 of its customers’ Bitcoins and about 100,000 of its own. This was equivalent to approximately 7% of all Bitcoins in circulation at the time, valued at around $473 million. At the time, Bitcoin was trading at around $600.
The exchange declared bankruptcy in 2014, owing creditors 45 billion yen ($414 million). Creditors have been waiting for their claims to be paid ever since. Earlier this year, in May, Mt. Gox makes its first transaction in over five years. This was part of the plans to distribute the assets back to creditors before October 31, 2024.