Kraken, a popular cryptocurrency exchange, has recently begun distributing Bitcoin to the creditors of the defunct Mt. Gox exchange. This news comes as a relief to impacted users who have been waiting for over 10 years to reclaim their lost funds following a historical hack.
Users reported seeing their crypto balances on the Kraken platform and some even received Bitcoin Cash tokens as part of the distribution process. The information was shared on Reddit through a subreddit dedicated to discussing the Mt. Gox insolvency situation.
According to reports from crypto.news, Kraken had committed to dispersing funds to creditors within a timeframe of seven to 14 days. This decision was made after Mt. Gox transferred approximately $6 billion worth of cryptocurrency to various addresses. However, users also noted instances of “brute force” attacks on their accounts, suggesting that malicious actors were attempting to steal the relief assets.
In a separate development on July 23, it was revealed that Mt. Gox had sent $2.85 billion worth of Bitcoin to four Bitstamp wallets. These transfers amounted to a total of 5110 BTC, which is equivalent to $340.1 million. The question now arises whether Bitstamp will follow a similar distribution timeline as Kraken or if there will be delays in the process.
Looking back at Mt. Gox’s troubled history, the exchange was targeted by hackers on multiple occasions between 2011 and 2014, resulting in the theft of over 850,000 BTC. This series of cyber attacks remains one of the largest in the crypto industry, with the stolen funds now valued at more than $60 billion. Creditors are owed an estimated $9 billion, leading to speculation about whether they will choose to sell their Bitcoin holdings once they regain access to them.
The potential selling pressure from creditors offloading their BTC tokens could impact the market, causing the token’s price to decrease. Currently, Bitcoin is trading down 2.3% at around $65,800 per token. Market observers are closely monitoring the situation to see how Mt. Gox creditors will react once they have control over their recovered funds. The distribution of Bitcoin by Kraken is seen as a significant step towards resolving the long-standing issue stemming from the Mt. Gox hack, bringing some closure to affected users after years of uncertainty.