Mt. Gox Files for Bankruptcy in Japan After $470 Million Bitcoin Loss

March 3, 2014, 10:17 PM UTC

Mt. Gox, once the world’s largest Bitcoin exchange, filed for bankruptcy in Japan saying about $470 million in Bitcoins belonging to its customers and the firm were missing.

“The company believes there is a high possibility that the Bitcoins were stolen,” Mt. Gox said in a statement.

The Feb. 28 filing follows three weeks of speculation about the fate of the Tokyo-based exchange, which suspended withdrawals on Feb. 7. Since Bitcoins exist as bits of software, they can be stolen if a hacker gains access to the computers and servers used to run online exchanges, where the virtual currency can ...

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