Mt. Gox was a Bitcoin exchange based in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan.[1] Launched in 2006 as a tradable card game service, Mt. Gox transitioned into a Bitcoin exchange by 2010 and handled over 70% of all Bitcoin transactions globally by early 2014.[2][3]
In February 2014, Mt. Gox suspended trading, closed its website and exchange service, and filed for bankruptcy protection from creditors.[4][5][6] By April 2014, the company had entered liquidation proceedings.[7][8] The company reported that approximately 850,000 bitcoins were missing, though 200,000 bitcoins were subsequently recovered.[9][10] In April 2015, Tokyo security company WizSec presented evidence indicating that most or all of the missing bitcoins were stolen directly from Mt. Gox's hot cryptocurrency wallet over time, beginning in late 2011.[11][12][13]
In 2017, Alexander Vinnik, the Russian operator of the Bitcoin exchange BTC-e, was arrested in Greece and indicted for laundering over $4 billion, including funds stolen from the hack of Mt. Gox.[14] US authorities accused Vinnik of using BTC-e to launder money for individuals involved in crimes such as computer hacking and drug trafficking.[15] They also linked him to the collapse of Mt. Gox, alleging that he laundered the stolen funds through BTC-e and Tradehill, another exchange he owned.[16]Vinnik's arrest was part of a series of US operations against Russian cybercriminals in Europe.[17] In May 2024, Vinnik pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering.[18]
In June 2023, the United States Department of Justice charged two Russian nationals, Alexey Bilyuchenko and Aleksandr Verner, with conspiring to launder approximately 647,000 bitcoins stolen in the 2014 hack of Mt. Gox.[19] The stolen bitcoins were valued at roughly half a billion dollars at the time.[20]
^Nilsson, Kim (19 April 2015). "The missing MtGox bitcoins". Archived from the original on 19 April 2015. Retrieved 10 December 2015. Most or all of the missing bitcoins were stolen straight out of the Mt. Gox hot wallet over time, beginning in late 2011