Mt. Gox

Mt. Gox
TypeBitcoin exchange
LocationShibuya, Tokyo, Japan
Founded2006 (2006)
Closed2014
OwnerTibanne Ltd. (owned by Mark Karpelès)
CurrencyBitcoin
Websitewww.mtgox.com

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]

  1. ^ Ogun, M. N. (8 October 2015). Terrorist Use of Cyberspace and Cyber Terrorism: New Challenges and Responses. IOS Press. ISBN 9781614995289. Retrieved 9 December 2017 – via Google Books.
  2. ^ "What is Mt. Gox?". Theblock.
  3. ^ Wallet, Trust (17 July 2024). "The Story of Mt. Gox: Explained | Trust". Trust Blog. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
  4. ^ Vigna, Paul (25 February 2014). "5 things about Mt. Gox's crisis". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 24 March 2021. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  5. ^ McLannahan, Ben (28 February 2014). "Bitcoin exchange Mt Gox files for bankruptcy protection". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 3 April 2022. Retrieved 6 March 2014.
  6. ^ Abrams, Rachel; Goldstein, Matthew; Tabuchi, Hiroko (28 February 2014). "Erosion of Faith Was Death Knell for Mt. Gox". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 14 September 2018. Retrieved 5 March 2017.
  7. ^ "Mt. Gox abandons rebuilding plans and files for liquidation: WSJ". Theverge.com. 16 April 2014. Archived from the original on 18 August 2019. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  8. ^ Frunza, Marius-Cristian (9 December 2015). Solving Modern Crime in Financial Markets: Analytics and Case Studies. Academic Press. ISBN 9780128045329. Retrieved 9 December 2017 – via Google Books.
  9. ^ Ito, Joi; Howe, Jeff (6 December 2016). Whiplash: How to Survive Our Faster Future. Grand Central Publishing. ISBN 9781455544585. Retrieved 9 December 2017 – via Google Books.
  10. ^ Abrams, Rachel; Popper, Nathaniel (25 February 2014). "Trading Site Failure Stirs Ire and Hope for Bitcoin". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 7 December 2017. Retrieved 5 March 2017.
  11. ^ 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
  12. ^ Popper, Nathaniel (25 May 2016). "Mt. Gox Creditors Seek Trillions Where There Are Only Millions". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 10 February 2019. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  13. ^ Kutylowski, Miroslaw; Vaidya, Jaideep (15 August 2014). Computer Security - ESORICS 2014: 19th European Symposium on Research in Computer Security, Wroclaw, Poland, September 7–11, 2014. Proceedings. Springer. ISBN 9783319112121. Retrieved 9 December 2017 – via Google Books.
  14. ^ Gibbs, Samuel (27 July 2017). "'Criminal mastermind' of $4bn bitcoin laundering scheme arrested". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
  15. ^ Lyngaas, Sean (24 May 2023). "Russian accused of money laundering lobbies to be included in potential US-Russia prisoner swap | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
  16. ^ De, Nikhilesh (3 May 2024). "BTC-e Operator Alexander Vinnik Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering Conspiracy Charge". www.coindesk.com. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
  17. ^ "Russian crypto criminal pleads guilty to U.S. money laundering charges - UPI.com". UPI. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
  18. ^ De, Nikhilesh (3 May 2024). "BTC-e Operator Alexander Vinnik Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering Conspiracy Charge". www.coindesk.com. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
  19. ^ Flashpoint (12 June 2023). "COURT DOC: Russian Nationals Charged With Hacking One Cryptocurrency Exchange And Illicitly Operating Another". Flashpoint. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
  20. ^ De, Nikhilesh (9 June 2023). "Mt. Gox's Hackers Are 2 Russian Nationals, U.S. DOJ Alleges in Indictment". www.coindesk.com. Retrieved 26 July 2024.