Mt. Gox hacker dumps Bitcoin: $114 million worth of BTC moved to exchanges, what is the market impact?

Mt. Gox was once the world’s largest Bitcoin exchange, filing for bankruptcy in 2014 after hackers stole approximately 850,000 Bitcoins. Today, wallets associated with that incident are active again, sending new sell signals to the market.

According to blockchain analysis, entities related to the Mt. Gox hacker incident’s core figure Aleksey Bilyuchenko have deposited 1,300 BTC into unknown trading platforms in the past 7 days. At current market prices, this amounts to approximately $114 million.

01 Event Focus: The Awakening of the Silent Whale

Based on data from blockchain analysis platform Arkham, addresses linked to the Mt. Gox hacker have been active recently. Analyst Emmett Gallic pointed out that these entities transferred 1,300 BTC to unknown exchanges over the past week.

As of December 25, these addresses have sold a total of 2,300 BTC, but still hold as many as 4,100 BTC. At current prices, their remaining assets are valued at about $360 million.

This indicates that potential selling pressure remains significant. This transfer activity is not an isolated event but is directly connected to a decade-long history of the crypto market.

The collapse of Mt. Gox is one of the most destructive events in cryptocurrency history. The exchange declared bankruptcy in 2014, revealing a loss of about 850,000 Bitcoins, affecting over 20,000 users worldwide.

This incident not only caused huge losses for investors but also inflicted long-term confidence wounds on the entire industry. The U.S. Department of Justice has formally charged Russian nationals Aleksey Bilyuchenko and Aleksandr Verner, alleging they hacked Mt. Gox starting in 2011.

02 Market Impact: Short-term Pressure and Long-term Resilience

The hacker’s selling activity occurs during a delicate period of Bitcoin price fluctuations. According to Gate data, as of December 25, Bitcoin’s price hovered around $87,000, with slight declines in the past 24 hours.

It is noteworthy that the hacker’s liquidation strategy is separate from the official bankruptcy trustee’s repayment plan. Trustee Shinichi Kobayashi recently announced an extension of the final repayment deadline from October 31, 2025, to October 31, 2026.

This extension effectively disperses potential market selling pressure. The trustee plans to release assets in phases through over-the-counter (OTC) trades to mitigate direct market impact. Currently, the Mt. Gox bankruptcy estate still holds about 34,689 BTC, valued at approximately $4 billion.

From a market structure perspective, Bitcoin’s average daily trading volume in Q3 2025 reached $155 billion, a 43.8% increase from Q2. This indicates that market depth and liquidity have significantly improved, capable of absorbing such single-point sell pressures to some extent.

03 Historical Echoes: Complete Record of the Mt. Gox Incident

To understand the significance of the current events, one must review the full rise and fall of Mt. Gox. Originally a card trading website called “Magic: The Gathering Online Exchange,” it transitioned into a Bitcoin exchange in 2010.

In 2011, French developer Mark Karpelès acquired the platform, leading it to become the world’s largest Bitcoin exchange, once accounting for 70% to 80% of global Bitcoin trading volume. However, vulnerabilities had already been planted.

As early as June 2011, Mt. Gox was hacked, with attackers exploiting a vulnerability to manipulate Bitcoin prices to 1 cent and transferring about 2,000 BTC. This incident exposed weaknesses in the exchange’s security system.

The real disaster struck in February 2014 when Mt. Gox suddenly suspended all Bitcoin withdrawals and then went offline. Investigations revealed that approximately 850,000 Bitcoins had been stolen, directly leading to bankruptcy.

Further investigations showed that large-scale hacking had actually begun as early as September 2011, even before Karpelès purchased the exchange, with Mt. Gox already losing a significant amount of Bitcoin.

04 Price Trends: Current State of the Bitcoin Market

Despite the pressure from hacker sell-offs, the Bitcoin market remains resilient. According to the latest data from Gate, as of December 25, Bitcoin (BTC) is priced at approximately $87,839.5, with a market cap of $1.75 trillion, accounting for 59.11% of the entire crypto market.

In the short term, Bitcoin’s price has changed +0.84% in the past 24 hours and +1.56% over the past 7 days. This suggests the market has responded relatively calmly to the sell-off news without panic selling.

Medium to long-term, Bitcoin’s price has slightly retraced -0.36% over the past 30 days, within normal volatility ranges. Notably, Bitcoin’s all-time high was $126,080, and current prices are still well below that level.

Market analysts remain cautiously optimistic about Bitcoin’s future price. Gate’s forecast indicates that by 2030, Bitcoin could reach $179,589.58, representing a potential return of about +58.00% compared to current levels.

05 Trading Strategies: Navigating Market Uncertainty

In the face of market uncertainty caused by hacker sell-offs, investors should develop prudent trading strategies. The primary principle is to avoid emotional trading, as panic selling often leads to unnecessary losses.

An effective approach is to monitor on-chain data—by tracking the movements of large wallets—anticipating potential market pressure. Blockchain transparency makes such monitoring possible and provides investors with more decision-making basis.

Considering that hackers still hold assets worth about $360 million in Bitcoin, the market may face ongoing selling pressure. In this context, gradual accumulation is more prudent than full-position entry at once.

It is also important to note that, despite hacker activity attracting attention, the fundamental aspects of the Bitcoin ecosystem remain solid. Its fixed supply of 21 million coins, with 19.96 million currently in circulation, has not changed its scarcity characteristics.

For investors seeking stability, the repayment plan from the Mt. Gox bankruptcy trustee can serve as a reference. Since the repayment deadline has been extended to October 31, 2026, the selling pressure from this channel has been dispersed and delayed.

Future Outlook

As of December 25, wallets related to the Mt. Gox hacker still hold 4,100 BTC, valued at about $360 million. The movement of these assets will continue to be closely monitored by blockchain analysts.

Meanwhile, the Mt. Gox bankruptcy trustee holds approximately $4 billion worth of 34,689 BTC, with the repayment plan extended to 2026. The market’s reaction to hacker sell-offs remains surprisingly calm, with Bitcoin prices stabilizing around $87,000.

This decade-long asset recovery saga is ongoing, and the Bitcoin market, with its increasingly deep and resilient structure, is learning to coexist with these historical ghosts.