$9 Billion in Bitcoin: Mt. Gox to Start Repayments in July

Defunct Bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox said it would begin distributing assets stolen from clients in a 2014 hack starting in July, after years of postponed deadlines.

“The Rehabilitation Trustee has been preparing to make repayments in Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash under the Rehabilitation Plan,” trustee Nobuaki Kobayashi said in a statement posted on the Mt. Gox website today.

“The repayments will be made from the beginning of July 2024,” Kobayashi added, noting due diligence and safety steps are still required.

Mt. Gox was once the world’s largest Bitcoin exchange, handling over 70% of all Bitcoin transactions in its early years. In 2014, hackers stole around 740,000 bitcoin, worth $15 billion today, in one of many attacks on the exchange from 2010-2013.

After declaring bankruptcy in 2014, Mt. Gox has faced numerous delays in repaying victims. Last year, the Tokyo court set an October 2024 deadline for the exchange’s civil rehabilitation plan.

In May, Mt. Gox moved over 140,000 BTC, worth around $9 billion, from cold wallets for the first time in five years. The transactions were likely preparations for repayments.

The upcoming payouts will be made in Bitcoin and Bitcoin cash through exchanges that Mt. Gox has partnered with. The order will depend on the progress of required due diligence with each platform.

Victims have waited over ten years to recover funds lost when Mt. Gox collapsed. For many, this July start date finally offers hope they will recoup stolen savings.

The reimbursements are expected to distribute 142,000 bitcoin, 143,000 bitcoin cash, and 69 billion Japanese yen owed to around 127,000 creditors.

While long anticipated, some worry the large payouts could momentarily weigh on Bitcoin’s price if victims sell part of their returned funds.

Nonetheless, affected users are eager to move on after Mt. Gox’s hack and failure became symbolic of Bitcoin’s early days. The repayments represent an ending chapter in Bitcoin’s history.