Victims of the infamous Mt. Gox saga will soon get to vote on a plan to distribute the remaining Bitcoin (BTC).
The End is Nigh
Mt. Gox creditors who suffered losses in the infamous 2014 hack that brought down the cryptocurrency exchange, will get a chance to vote on a proposal to return the lost BTC.
If approved, the proposal, which includes a draft rehabilitation plan, will distribute what’s left to verified creditors.
Those creditors will have the option to vote online, by mail, or in person in the not too distant future. The stated aim of the exchange’s trustee, Nobuaki Kobayashi is to resolve the process by October 20 this year.
Kobayashi originally proposed the plan in March 2020, officially filing it with the Tokyo District Court in December. The Court promptly approved the plan, allowing Kobayashi to organize the vote.
What Happened to Mt. Gox?
In early 2014 Mt. Gox (which was at the time the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world) suddenly suspended trading and filed for bankruptcy.
Quickly following was an initiation of liquidation proceedings. The exchange then suffered a series of apparent hacks which deprived it of 850,000 of its users’ BTC.
An investigation by a Japanese security firm led to the conclusion a malevolent party stole the BTC directly from the cryptocurrency exchange’s hot wallet over three years.
However, interestingly, since the alleged attack, investigators “found” 200,000 of the lost BTC, though the reasons for their recovery remain unclear to this day.
Is the Market Concerned?
Whilst the cryptocurrency market reaches record highs all-round, some are concerned that the potential dumping of Gox-era BTC could tank the market.
Indeed, 200,000 BTC today is worth around $10 billion at current market value. According to data from token list CoinGecko, that represents a sixth of the latest 24-hour volume for BTC.
One doesn’t have to be an economic analyst to imagine the effect that $10 billion in BTC would have. Moreover, the likelihood of a “dumping” could be high.
To the Mt. Gox creditors, $10 billion would be a huge windfall, for some (if not most) it would be life-changing. All eyes will be on this vote.