Mt. Gox Repayments to Begin via Bitstamp After 10 Years

After a decade-long wait, Mt. Gox customers are about to reclaim their stolen Bitcoin. Bitstamp, a European crypto exchange announced on Wednesday that it has received the assets from Mt. Gox representatives and will start distributing them as early as Thursday. What does this mean for the early Bitcoin investors affected by the infamous Mt. Gox hack?

Bitstamp is one of five exchanges selected to manage the repayment process. This involves over 20,000 former Mt. Gox customers. Along with Bitcoin customers will also receive Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and Ethereum (ETH) stolen during the hack. The process marks a significant milestone in the rehabilitation of Mt. Gox. This Japanese exchange collapsed in 2014 after losing 850,000 Bitcoins to hackers.

In a statement on X/Twitter Bitstamp said, "We're pleased to announce that we've received the Mt. Gox assets." The exchange added "We're working diligently to distribute them to our Bitstamp customers who are Mt. Gox creditors. Bitstamp further clarified that recipients will have full control of their assets within a week of receipt. This will follow the completion of security checks. The exchange also mentioned a separate distribution plan for UK residents.

Just yesterday American crypto exchange Kraken announced it had "successfully distributed" Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash to its customers. Kraken's CEO, Dave Ripley stated, "It was our privilege and duty to return the coins." Other exchanges participating in the distribution include Bitbank. SBI VC Trade and BitGo. Mt. Gox once a popular exchange for buying and selling Bitcoin, saw its demise after hackers exploited it. This led to the loss of 850000 Bitcoins. Law enforcement later recovered 140,000 Bitcoins. These are now being returned to former customers under a rehabilitation proposal approved in 2021.

Will this long-awaited repayment process bring closure to the Mt. Gox saga? For thousands of investors who have waited ten years, it is a moment of relief and recovery.

The Mt. Gox repayment process begins with Bitstamp distributing recovered assets to over 20,000 former customers. After a decade-long wait affected investors are finally seeing their Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash and Ethereum returned. This marks a significant step in the rehabilitation of the collapsed exchange.