Mt. Gox Announces Commencement of Bankruptcy Proceedings

Mt. Gox has announced the commencement of bankruptcy proceedings in Japan. Attorney at law Nobuaki Kobayashi has been appointed as the bankruptcy trustee.

The troubled bitcoin exchange filed for liquidation in a Tokyo court earlier this month, dropping its plans for civil rehabilitation. There was still some hope that outside investors could muscle in and save the exchange from liquidation, but the deal never materialised.

Impact on customers still unclear

Bankruptcy trustee Kobayashi issued a brief statement on Thursday, stating that he has the exclusive power to administer and dispose of Mt. Gox assets. He declared in a statement:

“The bankruptcy trustee will implement the bankruptcy proceedings, such as the administration and realization of the Company’s assets and the investigation of the claims. We kindly ask for your understanding and cooperation.”

Kobayashi expects a lot of inquires from interested parties, so in the interest of sharing as much information as possible his team compiled a document that will answer a wide range frequently asked questions.

In addition, a call centre has been set up and it can be contacted by telephone, but for the time being the scope of the responses will be limited.

Additional information coming soon

The five-page document answers some questions, but many more remain unanswered. The document stresses that the number of interested parties is “extremely large” and asks clients to refrain from calling the trustee directly.

A creditor meeting is being organised and it is scheduled for 23rd July. Creditors are not obliged to attend, as it would be impractical in many cases. Instead, the bankruptcy trustee is planning to publish the content of the meeting on Mt. Gox's website.

The process of filing proofs of claims will be disclosed through the Company’s website at a later date.

This is a developing story, so please stay tuned for updates.