Mt Gox Transfers $340 Million in Bitcoin to Bitstamp Amid Arkham Investigation
The insolvent Mt. Gox exchange initiated the transfer of $2.85 billion worth of BTC to new wallets today, as reported by blockchain analysis firm Arkham Intelligence. This transfer is part of Mt. Gox’s efforts to repay its creditors, with 5,110 BTC, valued at $340.1 million, being sent to four different Bitstamp addresses.
Arkham Intelligence revealed that a portion of the transferred BTC, specifically 1,598 BTC worth $106 million, was directed to a Bitstamp cold wallet. The remaining BTC was divided among three other Bitstamp addresses: 382.4 BTC ($25.44 million) to 3CgKHX, 2,239 BTC ($149.1 million) to 3QVD5H, and 890.9 BTC ($59.3 million) to 3DgJ7MPGS.
Earlier this month, Mt. Gox commenced the repayment process to creditors affected by the 2014 hack, committing to reimbursing over $9 billion in BTC and $73 million in Bitcoin Cash to impacted traders. Despite concerns about potential market volatility due to these repayments, market analysts have dismissed them as unwarranted fear, labeling it as “FUD” against the leading digital asset.
Ki Young Ju, CEO of CryptoQuant, emphasized that the impact of Mt. Gox’s actions was overstated, noting that the market cap growth has outpaced realized cap growth, indicating strong demand for Bitcoin. Even with Mt. Gox potentially selling $3 billion worth of BTC on Kraken, the amount represents only 1% of the realized cap increase during this bullish cycle, suggesting manageable liquidity.
Simultaneously, the latest BTC transfer coincided with a drop in Bitcoin’s price below $66,500, according to data from CryptoSlate. As of the current moment, wallets associated with Mt. Gox on Arkham’s platform still hold a significant amount of BTC, totaling 85,234 BTC, equivalent to $5.70 billion.
