Mt Gox moves $6bn in Bitcoin in sign of imminent payday to creditors
Mt. Gox creditors are one step closer to receiving their Bitcoin.
Wallets belonging to collapsed crypto exchange Mt. Gox moved 91,755 Bitcoin, worth over $5.9 billion, on Tuesday, according to crypto analysis firm Arkham Intelligence.
Crypto exchange Kraken confirmed to DL News that it had received a portion of those funds. Arkham Intelligence estimated that Kraken had 48,641 Bitcoin, worth over $3.1 billion, to distribute to creditors.
Kraken has notified creditors in an email that it will dole out the funds within the next two weeks.
In total, the Mt. Gox estate has almost 142,000 Bitcoin to hand back to creditors, and almost 143,000 Bitcoin Cash coins. At current prices, that’s worth almost $9.2 billion in Bitcoin and $25 million in Bitcoin Cash.
Launched in 2010 in Japan, Mt. Gox was one of the earliest crypto exchanges. At its peak, it handled over 70% of all Bitcoin trades worldwide.
The exchange abruptly suspended withdrawals and entered bankruptcy in 2014 following a series of hacks.
Impact on Bitcoin
For years, market participants have been anxious about the potential impact that Mt. Gox redemptions could have on the crypto market — especially if all creditors receive and sell their Bitcoin at the same time.
Bitcoin dropped 17% when the German government offloaded almost $3 billion worth of Bitcoin in the course of three weeks, in late June and early July.
But Mt. Gox creditors are unlikely to redeem all of their Bitcoin in one go, Brian Dixon, CEO of crypto hedge fund Off The Chain Capital, told DL News.
“A lot of creditors that have held onto the claims for this long are likely die-hard Bitcoiners,” Dixon said, and as such, they may want to hold their Bitcoin.
Off The Chain Capital itself is one of Mt. Gox’s creditors. The firm has $360 million in assets, and its Mt. Gox position makes up almost 20% of the fund.
Dixon said the company will be “very methodical” about selling the Bitcoin it receives.
But even if mass redemptions do occur, the market should be able to handle the selling pressure, Dixon said — noting that Bitcoin notched over $41 billion in trading volume over the last 24 hours.
There may be “a short-term drawdown but the market would absorb that quickly,” Dixon said.
It’s unclear when Mt. Gox will distribute the remaining $6.1 billion in Bitcoin, though it should be before October 31 — the company’s final deadline for repayments.
Tom Carreras is a markets correspondent for DL News. Got a tip about Mt. Gox and Bitcoin? Reach out at [email protected]
