Bitstamp has begun repaying Mt. Gox creditors after receiving all the funds owed to them from the trustee.
The cryptocurrency exchange received all the Bitcoin (BTC), Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and Ether (ETH) and started repaying creditors on July 25.
The recipients can expect to have full control of their assets within a week after the completion of the necessary security controls, according to an announcement shared with Cointelegraph.
While the Mt. Gox incident should not have occurred, Bitcoin’s price appreciation since the incident is a testament to the asset’s value, according to Jean-Baptiste Graftieaux, global CEO of Bitstamp, who wrote:
“We’re proud to play our part in making the Mt Gox investors whole. It’s a testament to Bitcoin’s value as an asset that, although the Mt Gox investors should never have been unable to access their tokens, many will make a serious profit.”
Over $9.4 billion worth of Bitcoin is owed to approximately 127,000 Mt. Gox creditors who have been waiting for over 10 years to recover their funds — threatening significant Bitcoin sell pressure from creditors.
The announcement comes days after Mt. Gox executed the first test transactions on the Bitstamp exchange.
Related: Over 36% of Mt. Gox Bitcoin distributed to creditors, but whales keep accumulating
Mt. Gox’s UK creditors will have to wait a few more months: Bitstamp
The announcement marks a positive sign for Mt. Gox creditors, but Bitstamp users based in the United Kingdom may have to wait a few more months before finally receiving their assets.
Bitstamp’s announcement added that UK customers will be informed in “due course”:
“While UK customers will not be included in the first tranche of distributions, UK customers can expect to receive their restored within the next few months and will receive more information in due course.”
Other exchanges are also working on repaying creditors. Notably, Kraken finished repaying Mt. Gox creditors on July 24, according to Kraken CEO Dave Ripey.
Related: Why Biden’s exit from the elections briefly pushed Bitcoin price to $68K
Bitcoin’s price remains subdued, but Mt. Gox creditors aren’t selling
Bitcoin’s price fell over 3.2% in the 24 hours leading up to 12:31 pm in UTC, trading just above the $63,300 mark. The world’s first cryptocurrency is down 4.3% over the past five days, according to Bitstamp data.
However, Bitcoin’s price doesn’t seem to be affected by Mt. Gox creditors, as onchain data suggests they aren’t selling.
Following Kraken’s distribution to creditors, trading volume on the exchange remained largely unchanged, according to Ki Young Ju, founder and CEO of CryptoQuant, who wrote in a July 24 X post:
“Mt. Gox creditors received Bitcoin 4 hours ago. There has been no significant spike in hourly spot trading volume dominance or BTC outflows on Kraken since then.”
Other analysts expect the Mt. Gox payments will only cause selling pressure among “paper hands,” which is crypto slang for the crypto holders with the least conviction.