# The Mt. Gox Collapse: Losses, Wallets and a Decade of Repayments

*Mt. Gox made the distinction between an on-chain coin and an exchange liability impossible to ignore. The company’s own figures changed within weeks, and a full account must preserve the date, status, and uncertainty attached to each number.*

- Research question: How many bitcoin did Mt. Gox report missing, how much was located, and what ultimately happened to creditors?
- Canonical: https://degreesofsatoshi.com/history/mt-gox-collapse/
- Published 2026-08-08 · last reviewed 2026-08-09 · covers 2010-07-01/2026-10-31
- Author: Degrees of Satoshi editorial project (https://degreesofsatoshi.com/authors/degrees-of-satoshi-editorial-project/)
- Citation files: https://degreesofsatoshi.com/history/mt-gox-collapse/citation.bib · https://degreesofsatoshi.com/history/mt-gox-collapse/citation.ris · https://degreesofsatoshi.com/history/mt-gox-collapse/citation.csl.json
- Evidence data: https://degreesofsatoshi.com/history/mt-gox-collapse/evidence.json

## Key finding

Mt. Gox initially reported that almost all of approximately 850,000 BTC was missing; after locating 199,999.99 BTC in an old-format wallet, it revised the estimated disappearance to approximately 650,000 BTC and reported total holdings of approximately 202,000 BTC. ([Civil-rehabilitation filing announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140228-announcement_eng.pdf); [Old-wallet balance announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140320-btc-announce.pdf))

## Verified record

| Date | Documented quantity or action | Status of figure | What the record establishes | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 28 February 2014 | ≈850,000 BTC reported lost | Company estimate in filing announcement | Approximately 750,000 BTC was attributed to customer balances and approximately 100,000 BTC to the company. | [Civil-rehabilitation filing announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140228-announcement_eng.pdf) |
| 7 March 2014 | 199,999.99 BTC located | Company-reported wallet balance | Mt. Gox said a rescan found the balance in an old-format wallet used before June 2011. | [Old-wallet balance announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140320-btc-announce.pdf) |
| 14–15 March 2014 | Located coins moved offline | Company-reported custody action | Mt. Gox said it moved the located coins from online to offline wallets and reported the movements to the court and supervisor. | [Old-wallet balance announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140320-btc-announce.pdf) |
| 20 March 2014 | ≈202,000 BTC total then held | Company provisional holding figure | The total combined the located wallet with approximately 2,000 BTC previously known. | [Old-wallet balance announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140320-btc-announce.pdf) |
| 20 March 2014 | ≈650,000 BTC estimated missing | Revised company estimate | The revision subtracted the newly located amount and remained expressly subject to investigation. | [Old-wallet balance announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140320-btc-announce.pdf) |
| June–July 2024 | Repayments scheduled to begin | Trustee notice under rehabilitation plan | The trustee announced bitcoin and bitcoin-cash transfers through designated exchanges beginning in July. | [Commencement of repayments notice](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20240624_announcement_en.pdf) |
| 21 August 2024 | Further repayment notice | Trustee proceeding update | The official archive recorded an additional notice concerning repayments in bitcoin and bitcoin cash. | [Official Mt. Gox proceedings archive](https://www.mtgox.com/?Locale=en_US) |
| 27 March 2025 | >19,500 creditors repaid in BTC/BCH | Trustee progress report | The trustee reported bitcoin and bitcoin-cash repayments to more than 19,500 rehabilitation creditors through designated exchanges. | [Status of BTC and BCH repayments](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20250327_50441ef4-dc28-473a-9fd2-495db2da4bbd_announcement_en.pdf) |
| 27 October 2025 | Remaining deadline extended to 31 October 2026 | Trustee proceeding update | Covered repayment categories were largely complete for eligible creditors without process issues; some creditors still awaited completion of required procedures or other conditions. | [Repayment-status and deadline notice](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20251027_1cc36334-e8b2-4fe4-8135-97d9a149e4f7_announcement_en.pdf) |

## An exchange balance became the dominant way many users encountered bitcoin {#from-exchange-to-infrastructure}

Mt. Gox began outside finance and evolved into a major bitcoin trading venue. Customers deposited sovereign currency or bitcoin, traded against entries in the exchange’s internal database, and requested withdrawals through systems the company controlled. That arrangement made trading convenient while replacing direct control of private keys with a claim against an operator.

The distinction is visible in the records each system produces. Bitcoin’s blockchain can show transfers to and from addresses, but it does not contain Mt. Gox’s complete customer ledger, contractual obligations, banking balances, or authorization controls. Conversely, an account statement can show that the exchange owes a customer without proving that matching bitcoin remains under the exchange’s control.

Sources: [Civil-rehabilitation filing announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140228-announcement_eng.pdf)

## A withdrawal crisis became a balance-sheet crisis {#withdrawal-crisis}

In February 2014 Mt. Gox suspended bitcoin withdrawals and publicly discussed transaction malleability. Transaction malleability was a real property of then-standard transactions, but the existence of that protocol behavior did not establish the size, timing, or cause of the company’s asset shortfall. The later civil-rehabilitation filing disclosed a much broader inability to meet liabilities.

On 28 February, the company announced its application for civil rehabilitation in Japan and reported that almost all of roughly 850,000 BTC it said it held had disappeared. The total was divided approximately into 750,000 BTC corresponding to user balances and 100,000 BTC belonging to Mt. Gox. These were the company’s initial figures, not a completed forensic accounting.

Sources: [Civil-rehabilitation filing announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140228-announcement_eng.pdf)

## An old-format wallet changed the estimate within three weeks {#old-wallet-discovery}

Mt. Gox’s 20 March notice said that wallets believed empty were rescanned after the filing. On 7 March, an old-format wallet used before June 2011 was found to contain 199,999.99 BTC. The company said it reported the discovery through counsel and moved the coins into offline storage between 14 and 15 March.

The discovery raised reported holdings to approximately 202,000 BTC, including about 2,000 BTC already known. Mt. Gox accordingly revised the amount estimated to have disappeared from approximately 850,000 to approximately 650,000 BTC. The notice itself warned that both cause and exact amount remained under investigation. A responsible history preserves that warning every time it reproduces the revised figure.

Sources: [Old-wallet balance announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140320-btc-announce.pdf)

## Wallet movements are evidence, but attribution needs an external bridge {#what-onchain-analysis-can-show}

Once an address is reliably attributed to the estate, blockchain records can independently show transaction identifiers, amounts, times, and later destinations. They can help reconcile reported custody movements and trustee distributions. The chain cannot itself prove why a transaction occurred, which customer liability it satisfied, or whether every attributed address belongs to the same legal entity.

This limitation is especially important when describing the missing coins. Public tracing can identify clusters and flows under stated assumptions, but it should not convert a provisional company estimate into a proven theft total or assign an actor without judicial or documentary support. The highest-confidence ledger is a dated reconciliation of official figures beside verifiable transactions, with the two evidence types kept distinct.

Sources: [Old-wallet balance announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140320-btc-announce.pdf); [Commencement of repayments notice](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20240624_announcement_en.pdf)

## The creditor process lasted far longer than the exchange {#rehabilitation-and-repayments}

The proceedings shifted from bankruptcy to civil rehabilitation, allowing distributions under a court-approved plan rather than a simple liquidation at the earlier yen value of claims. Creditors had to navigate claim recognition, repayment elections, identity checks, and designated exchanges. The legal claim and the on-chain asset were connected through a trustee-administered process, not by Bitcoin automatically returning funds.

On 24 June 2024, the rehabilitation trustee announced that bitcoin and bitcoin-cash repayments would begin through exchanges from early July after technical, compliance, and information checks. By 27 March 2025, the trustee reported BTC and BCH repayments to more than 19,500 rehabilitation creditors through designated exchanges.

On 27 October 2025, the trustee said covered repayment categories were largely complete for eligible creditors who had completed the required procedures and encountered no issue, while some other eligible creditors still awaited necessary steps or resolution. The remaining repayment deadline was extended to 31 October 2026. These notices establish progress and an administrative endpoint, not that every creditor or disputed claim had been resolved.

Sources: [Official Mt. Gox proceedings archive](https://www.mtgox.com/?Locale=en_US); [Repayment procedures notice](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20220706_announcement_en.pdf); [Commencement of repayments notice](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20240624_announcement_en.pdf); [Status of BTC and BCH repayments](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20250327_50441ef4-dc28-473a-9fd2-495db2da4bbd_announcement_en.pdf); [Repayment-status and deadline notice](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20251027_1cc36334-e8b2-4fe4-8135-97d9a149e4f7_announcement_en.pdf)

## Continuous block production did not make customers whole {#custody-lesson}

Bitcoin’s consensus continued to operate while Mt. Gox failed. That distinction is analytically necessary: the exchange’s internal accounting and custody controls were not Bitcoin’s consensus mechanism. It is also insufficient as consolation. Customers experienced a loss of access and years of legal uncertainty even though their losses did not stop block validation.

Mt. Gox therefore belongs in Bitcoin history as an infrastructure failure with system-wide consequences. It altered perceptions of exchange solvency, private-key control, and the legal status of custodial claims. The enduring lesson is not the slogan ‘not your keys’ by itself, but the need to identify exactly which ledger records ownership, which party can authorize movement, and which remedy exists if those records diverge.

Sources: [Civil-rehabilitation filing announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140228-announcement_eng.pdf); [Official Mt. Gox proceedings archive](https://www.mtgox.com/?Locale=en_US); [Commencement of repayments notice](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20240624_announcement_en.pdf)

## How Mt. Gox’s own bitcoin accounting changed

Every figure is kept in the form and status used by the company or trustee; subtraction does not turn a provisional estimate into a final forensic finding.

| Reported date | User-balance BTC | Company BTC | Located or held BTC | Estimated missing BTC | Document status |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 28 February 2014 | ≈750,000 | ≈100,000 | Not yet included | Almost all of ≈850,000 | Initial civil-rehabilitation announcement |
| 20 March 2014 | Original component unchanged | Original component unchanged | 199,999.99 newly located; ≈202,000 total held | ≈650,000 | Revised provisional company estimate |
| 24 June 2024 | Creditor claims governed by plan | Estate-controlled holdings | Repayment transfers prepared | Not restated as a new loss estimate | Trustee implementation notice |

## Claims and their limits

- Mt. Gox initially reported almost all of approximately 850,000 BTC missing. ([Civil-rehabilitation filing announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140228-announcement_eng.pdf); [Old-wallet balance announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140320-btc-announce.pdf))
- The company located 199,999.99 BTC in an old-format wallet and then estimated approximately 650,000 BTC remained missing. ([Old-wallet balance announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140320-btc-announce.pdf))
- The rehabilitation trustee announced bitcoin and bitcoin-cash repayments beginning through designated exchanges in July 2024. ([Commencement of repayments notice](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20240624_announcement_en.pdf); [Official Mt. Gox proceedings archive](https://www.mtgox.com/?Locale=en_US))
- By 27 March 2025, the trustee reported BTC and BCH repayments to more than 19,500 rehabilitation creditors; in October 2025 it extended the remaining deadline to 31 October 2026. ([Status of BTC and BCH repayments](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20250327_50441ef4-dc28-473a-9fd2-495db2da4bbd_announcement_en.pdf); [Repayment-status and deadline notice](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20251027_1cc36334-e8b2-4fe4-8135-97d9a149e4f7_announcement_en.pdf))
- Mt. Gox customer balances were custodian liabilities rather than customer-controlled on-chain outputs. ([Civil-rehabilitation filing announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140228-announcement_eng.pdf); [Old-wallet balance announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140320-btc-announce.pdf))

## Caveats

- The 850,000, 202,000, and 650,000 BTC figures were company-reported and provisional; label them by date and never present them as one final audit.
- Locating an old wallet reduced the estimated shortfall but did not restore customers’ direct control or resolve their claims.
- On-chain attribution depends on documentary or evidentiary links between addresses and the estate; blockchain data alone does not identify a legal owner.
- The trustee’s reported creditor count and statement that covered categories were largely complete do not establish that every creditor had received every repayment; eligibility, completed procedures, process issues, and disputed claims remained relevant.

## Questions this dossier answers

### How many bitcoin did Mt. Gox lose?

Mt. Gox initially reported almost all of approximately 850,000 BTC missing. After finding 199,999.99 BTC in an old-format wallet, it reported roughly 202,000 BTC held and revised the estimated missing amount to approximately 650,000 BTC; all were company-reported provisional figures. ([Civil-rehabilitation filing announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140228-announcement_eng.pdf); [Old-wallet balance announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140320-btc-announce.pdf))

### Have all Mt. Gox creditors been repaid?

No official notice establishes universal completion. By March 2025 the trustee reported BTC and BCH repayments to more than 19,500 creditors; in October it said covered categories were largely complete for eligible creditors without process issues and extended the remaining deadline to 31 October 2026. ([Status of BTC and BCH repayments](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20250327_50441ef4-dc28-473a-9fd2-495db2da4bbd_announcement_en.pdf); [Repayment-status and deadline notice](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20251027_1cc36334-e8b2-4fe4-8135-97d9a149e4f7_announcement_en.pdf))

### Did the Mt. Gox collapse mean Bitcoin’s blockchain was hacked?

The documented failure concerned a custodial exchange’s assets, liabilities, controls, and legal process, not a change to Bitcoin’s consensus rules. The blockchain continued operating, while customers faced claims against an intermediary that controlled the relevant keys. ([Civil-rehabilitation filing announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140228-announcement_eng.pdf); [Old-wallet balance announcement](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140320-btc-announce.pdf); [Commencement of repayments notice](https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20240624_announcement_en.pdf))

## Sources

1. Civil-rehabilitation filing announcement, MtGox Co., Ltd.. https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140228-announcement_eng.pdf
2. Old-wallet balance announcement, MtGox Co., Ltd.. https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20140320-btc-announce.pdf
3. Official Mt. Gox proceedings archive, Mt. Gox Rehabilitation Trustee. https://www.mtgox.com/?Locale=en_US
4. Repayment procedures notice, Mt. Gox Rehabilitation Trustee. https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20220706_announcement_en.pdf
5. Commencement of repayments notice, Mt. Gox Rehabilitation Trustee. https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20240624_announcement_en.pdf
6. Status of BTC and BCH repayments (2025-03-27), Mt. Gox Rehabilitation Trustee. https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20250327_50441ef4-dc28-473a-9fd2-495db2da4bbd_announcement_en.pdf
7. Repayment-status and deadline notice (2025-10-27), Mt. Gox Rehabilitation Trustee. https://www.mtgox.com/img/pdf/20251027_1cc36334-e8b2-4fe4-8135-97d9a149e4f7_announcement_en.pdf

## Cite

Degrees of Satoshi editorial project. “The Mt. Gox Collapse: Losses, Wallets and a Decade of Repayments.” Degrees of Satoshi, published 2026-08-08; last reviewed 2026-08-09. https://degreesofsatoshi.com/history/mt-gox-collapse/

- HTML: https://degreesofsatoshi.com/history/mt-gox-collapse/
- Markdown: https://degreesofsatoshi.com/history/mt-gox-collapse/index.md
- Guide for agents: https://degreesofsatoshi.com/llms.txt