- Mt. Gox has extended its deadline for repayments by a year to Oct. 31, 2024, from Oct. 31, 2023.
- This delay is a relief for Bitcoin holders who are concerned about the sheer amount of BTC coins that might be released to the open market.
After nearly a decade of waiting, some Mt. Gox creditors will wait another 12 months after the crypto exchange trustee extended the repayment period. A letter published on Sept. 21 by the Rehabilitation Trustee revealed the extension of the repayment to Oct. 31, 2024. This followed the approval of the Tokyo District Court to revise the repayment timeline as revealed by the defunct crypto exchange’s trustees.
Established in 2010, Mt. Gox was a premier crypto exchange. At its peak, the exchange handled over 70 percent of all Bitcoin transactions. However, in 2014, the exchange was hacked leading to 850,000 BTC, (worth nearly $23 billion at current prices) being stolen. The breach affected around 24,000 creditors who have been awaiting some form of relief for nearly a decade now.
The latest delay is one of many after the date was shifted from Sept. 30 to Oct. 31. This was motivated by the extension of the registration deadline for the BTC repayment process from March 10 to April 6. Even as the trustees extend for another 12 months, it warns that the “schedule is subject to change depending on the circumstances, and the specific timing of repayments to each rehabilitation creditor has not yet been determined.”
🚀 Breaking: Mt. Gox Trustee Drops a Bombshell! 🚀
🕐 New Deadline Alert! 🗓️ Base Repayment, Early Lump-Sum, and Intermediate Repayment dates EXTENDED to October 31, 2024! 🚀
Prepare for an Extra Year of Anticipation! 🌟 #MtGox #Bitcoin #BTC pic.twitter.com/13q80pdV5j
— Collin Brown (@CollinBrownXRP) September 21, 2023
Following the hack, the exchange managed to recover nearly 20 percent of the stash and at present holds 142,000 BTC. In addition to the BTC coins, the exchange has $1.7 billion in cash, and around 142,000 Bitcoin cash (BCH). The repayment process seeks to compensate over 10,000 creditors. Although a fraction of the total, it is a token of appreciation for the early pioneers of the industry.
Read More: Bitcoin: Mt. Gox to release 141,686 BTC and 143,000 BCH – Will BTC price drop? Report
Will The Mt. Gox Repayment Affect BTC Prices?
The sheer amount of the BTC to be reimbursed as well as impatient creditors who have waited for some sort of relief for nearly a decade has some Bitcoin holders concerned. There have been fears that a majority of creditors will be eager to sell off their holdings which could flood the market and see BTC prices crash.
Earlier this year, crypto financial services platform Matrixport released a report analyzing the potential impact of the Mt. Gox haul. In its view, the event will have a limited impact on the BTC price. Financial service provider UBS has also shared the same sentiment. UBS strategist Ivan Kachkovski noted that the Bitcoin available to the exchange represents 16 percent of the recent daily trading volume. In addition, since most of the creditors are early adopters and true believers of BTC, the tokens are unlikely to reach the market.