Kraken Secures 48,641 Bitcoin From Mt. Gox, What Comes Next?

Kraken crypto exchange is said to have received 48,641 worth of Bitcoin (BTC) from the defunct Mt. Gox exchange. This update from Arkham Intelligence comes only hours after the defunct exchange transferred huge chunks of Bitcoin to an internal wallet.

Mt. Gox’s Bitcoin Transfer to Kraken

Arkham, an on-chain crypto data platform, said a wallet address linked to Kraken received 48,641 BTC valued at about $3.1 billion from Mt. Gox. Note that Kraken is one of the exchanges chosen by Mt. Gox to help distribute BTC to creditors that lost funds during the 2014 hack.

Notably, Kraken has acknowledged the received Bitcoin from Mt. Gox and has promised to commence repayment within 7 to 14 days. In an update, Kraken said creditors will only receive amounts determined by the trustees of Mt. Gox and will distribute according to their instructions.

Meanwhile, our previous article published this morning shows Mt. Gox moving $2.4 billion worth of BTC to an undisclosed wallet address. Given the anticipated reimbursement process, this movement signaled fund distribution to victims of the hack.

However, Arkham highlighted in its recent update that $2.74 billion worth of BTC was transferred today, is still being held by Mt. Gox. The defunct exchange filed for bankruptcy in 2014 after suffering a notorious hack that led to the loss of about 850,000 BTC. Therefore, Kraken’s receipt of funds provides relief to Mt. Gox creditors who have been patiently waiting for recovery for almost a decade.

Bitcoin’s response to Mt. Gox transfers

Bitcoin, the world’s leading digital asset, plummeted sharply from $65,000 to the $62,000 range in response to this morning’s huge transfer from Mt. Gox. This is probably due to concerns from investors that a potential sell-off situation could happen as soon as repayment to Mt. Gox’s creditors begins.

Notwithstanding that, BTC quickly changed hands, trading at $63,720 as of this writing.

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Godfrey Benjamin