Mt. Gox Moves $2 Billion in Bitcoin Amid Creditor Repayment Efforts

Key Takeaways

• Mt Gox moved around 32,371 BTC in total, with the majority—approximately 30,371 BTC—transferred to a wallet identified as “1FG2C…Rveoy” 
• An additional internal transfer of 2,000 BTC from Mt. Gox’s cold wallets suggest these movements could be part of an asset reorganization 

On November 4, the defunct crypto exchange Mt. Gox initiated its largest Bitcoin transfer in months, sending around $2.19 billion worth of BTC to two unknown wallet addresses, part of the exchange’s ongoing creditor repayment plan. 

Blockchain intelligence firm Arkham revealed that the exchange moved around 32,371 BTC in total, with the majority—approximately 30,371 BTC—transferred to a wallet identified as “1FG2C…Rveoy” and another 2,000 BTC to “1Jbez…LAPs6.” An additional internal transfer of 2,000 BTC from one of Mt. Gox’s cold wallets indicates that these movements could be part of an asset reorganization tied to its extended repayment timeline.

The impact of this transfer was felt in the cryptocurrency market, with Bitcoin prices dropping by nearly 2% within hours, briefly falling below $68,000 as traders speculated on the potential effects of the large transaction. The movement comes at a volatile time in the market, which has been especially sensitive to shifts in Bitcoin liquidity, partly due to broader economic events and the approaching U.S. elections.

The transfer follows Mt. Gox’s recent announcement that it would extend its repayment deadline for creditors by one year, moving it from October 2024 to October 31, 2025. This extension affects thousands of creditors who were financially impacted by the exchange’s 2014 collapse, which was caused by one of the largest hacks in cryptocurrency history. During this breach, hackers compromised Mt. Gox’s security systems and made off with approximately 740,000 BTC, a sum now valued at over $15 billion. The breach forced Mt. Gox into bankruptcy and left a significant number of investors waiting on eventual compensation.

Despite the passage of nearly a decade, the movement of assets from Mt. Gox still attracts attention, given the historical and financial significance of the event. At its height, the Tokyo-based exchange processed more than 70% of all Bitcoin transactions globally, making it the largest platform in the world at that time. The company’s downfall triggered a chain of legal and financial challenges, resulting in what has become one of the longest recovery processes in the cryptocurrency sector.

The November 4 transaction also follows a pattern of incremental transfers from Mt. Gox-linked wallets. In late September, a smaller movement of 500 BTC was observed, distributed to two unidentified wallets.

More recent data from Spot on Chain notes that Mt. Gox wallets have moved roughly 32,871 BTC in the past four days, with 296 BTC—valued at over $20 million—deposited in wallets associated with exchanges OKX and B2C2

As per reports,  the Mt. Gox wallet still holds a substantial balance of approximately 44,378 BTC, worth an estimated $3.04 billion. 

The ongoing repayment process has seen Mt. Gox trustees work for years to devise and implement a fair distribution plan for affected investors, with over $6 billion in BTC already distributed. 

Mt. Gox is expected to proceed with other large-scale transfers in the coming months, aiming to finish creditor repayments by October 2025.