Markets
Mt. Gox Moves $2.7 Billion in Bitcoin Out of Cold Storage Amid Market Crash
The Mt. Gox bankruptcy estate has transferred billions of dollars worth of Bitcoin (BTC) to an unidentified wallet, further raising concerns about falling cryptocurrency prices.
Data from blockchain analytics firm Arkham Intelligence shows that a cold storage wallet belonging to Mt. Gox transferred 47,228 BTC, worth approximately $2.71 billion, according to a Thursday post on Xformerly Twitter.
This comes after several test transactions conducted on Wednesday by the estate, valued at less than $27 in three separate transactions, according to the blockchain data also provided by Arkham.
Mt. Gox refunds are expected to begin this month following extensive preparations for fund distribution. The defunct exchange will disburse approximately 142,000 BTC and 143,000 Bitcoin Cash.
The development marks a step toward resolving the decade-long wait of 127,000 creditors affected by the collapse of the former Japanese cryptocurrency exchange in 2014.
Several headwinds continue to weigh on investor sentiment, including tensions stemming from the recent Bitcoin transfer by the German government, which began transferring seized assets to its own wallet six months ago.
Rising interest rates, inflation and global economic instability also present uncertainty, Decrypt was previously counted.
The German government seized nearly 50,000 BTC from the operators of the illegal streaming site Movie2k.to in 2020. The Bitcoin, initially valued at around $2 billion, was confiscated as part of an investigation into the site’s activities, which included distributing pirated movies and laundering the profits.
Approximately 1,300 BTC, worth $75.5 million, was sent to several exchanges including Bitstamp, Coinbase and Kraken on Wednesday, raising concerns that prices could fall.
“It would take a massive July for the Bitcoin price to withstand the sheer weight of supply flooding the market from Mt. Gox and the German government,” Pav Hundal, lead market analyst at cryptocurrency exchange Swyftx, told Decrypt. “That could be how we reach $50,000.”
Bitcoin’s price has fallen 9.5% since the start of the week, falling from $62,000 on Monday to $56,700 on Wednesday. The asset is trading at just over $56,900, CoinGecko data show.