Bitcoin dipped by 2% on May 28 following the transfer of 107,547 BTC, worth nearly $7.3 billion, from wallets associated with the defunct crypto exchange Mt. Gox to an unknown wallet. This move comes ahead of Mt. Gox’s plan to return BTC holdings to creditors by October.
Blockchain tracking account Whale Alert reported the transactions in several May 28 posts, noting six on-chain transfers ranging from 3,999 BTC to 32,499 BTC within hours.
Transaction Details
Blockchain explorer Arkham Intelligence revealed transaction hashes from 1:41 am to 4:46 am UTC, indicating multiple transfers from Mt. Gox cold wallets, each moving around 2,000 BTC. All transactions directed BTC to a single, unlabeled address, now holding 107,547 BTC valued at approximately $7.29 billion.
Lack of Immediate Response
Mt. Gox trustee firm Nagashima Ohno and Tsunematsu did not immediately respond to inquiries regarding the reason and destination for the Bitcoin transfers.
Market Reaction
In the wake of these large BTC moves, Bitcoin’s price dropped to $67,875 from $69,374 at the time of the first transfer, as per CoinMarketCap, marking a 2% decline. Analysts from K33 Research previously warned that moving Mt. Gox-era Bitcoin could unsettle the market and exert downward pressure on the cryptocurrency’s price.
Background
Mt. Gox owes over $9.4 billion worth of Bitcoin to around 127,000 creditors, who have been waiting for their funds since the exchange’s collapse in 2014 due to multiple unnoticed hacks. The final repayment deadline is set for October 31, with the trustee contacting creditors since January to confirm their identities and exchange accounts for repayment.