- MtGox creditors can look forward to payments coming as soon as this year
- The repayment deadline has been put back to October 2024 but only for those whose payment details have not been verified
- Payouts have been in the pipeline for almost two years
The first MtGox payouts are due to be sent out at the end of this year, according to the trustee, Nobuaki Kobayashi. Kobayashi posted an update to the MtGox creditor website today which pushed the deadline for payouts back by up to a year for those whose payment details have not yet been verified, while those whose details have been accepted can expect payouts to start “in sequence as early as the end of this year.” The deadline for payouts had been 31 October, but there were few in the creditor community who believed this would hold given the lack of action leading up to it.
Another Delay, but Hope on the Horizon
MtGox customers have been waiting for their payouts ever since the final and binding rehabilitation plan was signed in November 2021, almost eight years after the exchange collapsed following multiple breaches. The deadline for the submission of payment details has delayed the process ever since, with creditors growing exasperated over the interminable delays.
In an update posted today, Kobayashi revealed that, while repayment plans are ongoing, the deadline has had to be pushed back yet again:
…given the time required for rehabilitation creditors to provide the necessary information, and for the Rehabilitation Trustee to confirm such information and engage in discussions and share information with banks, fund transfer service providers, and Designated Cryptocurrency Exchanges etc., involved in the repayments…the Rehabilitation Trustee will not be able to complete the repayments above by the deadline of the Base Repayment, the Early Lump-Sum Repayment, and the Intermediate Repayment, all of which were set for October 31, 2023.
These payouts have therefore been pushed back to October 31, 2024, but those who have already had their details confirmed are in for a better time, theoretically at least:
…rehabilitation creditors who have provided the Rehabilitation Trustee with the necessary information, repayments will be made in sequence as early as the end of this year.
Kobayashi was sure to note, however, that this process could be delayed further if necessary and that no specific timing had yet been agreed for repayments.
The announcement also warns those who have not yet had their payment details verified that “repayment is not yet in a position to commence” until they do. Creditors have complained in the past that the process for verifying bank or crypto exchange details has been far from flawless, with the Japanese system not matching the details they have been given by their bank.
