Mt. Gox Files For Chapter 15 Bankruptcy

Mt. Gox is well-known for creating one of the world's first Bitcoin trading posts. Unfortunately, in the company's most recent attempt to save its legacy, the virtual company has had to file for bankruptcy to protect its remaining assets, while trying to expand internationally. Mt. Gox has filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy proceedings in the United States. Chapter 15 bankruptcy is special because it often deals with cases and scenarios that are related to other countries as well. The goal of this proceeding is to combine efforts to come to a mutual agreement. The Japanese company first filed for bankruptcy protection on February 28, back in Tokyo, Japan. Filing in the U.S. enables the virtual currency company to use the U.S. court systems which would help solve the company's case faster and much more efficiently. Related: What Companies Accept Bitcoin? CEO Mark Karpeles is blaming cyber attacks and theft for the loss of monetary gain and has even stated that it can go bankrupt at any point in time. "For several weeks MtGox customers have been affected by bitcoin withdrawal issues that compounded on themselves. Publicly, MtGox declared that 'transaction malleability' caused the system to be subject to theft, and that something needed to be done by the core devs to fix it." Karpeles continued, "Gox's own workaround solution was criticized, and eventually a fix was provided by Blockchain.info. The truth, it turns out, is that the damage had already been done. At this point 744,408 BTC are missing due to malleability-related theft which went unnoticed for several years. "The cold storage has been wiped out due to a leak in the hot wallet. The reality is that MtGox can go bankrupt at any moment, and certainly deserves to as a company." Even though all signs point to a bankrupt company, the Bitcoin industry has flourished in general and some signs have even pointed to new ATMs being created to function with Bitcoin currency.