PC World interview
Karpeles agrees to an interview with PC World on the condition that he will not discuss other than in general terms what happened at the company, the police investigation into it and other litigation involving him. He says Tibanne now has 13 employees and still does Web and server hosting as well as Web and mobile application development. Tibanne’s graphics editing software subsidiary, Shade3D, has about 10 staff.
I’ve been trying to keep Tibanne and Shade3D running well so we can maybe assist with the Mt. Gox bankruptcy…I cannot apologize enough for what happened. While I believe I did everything I could do to prevent this from happening, it still happened. Right now, I’m trying to do my best to cooperate with the bankruptcy process and the ongoing investigation.
Karpeles says Bitcoin needs the kind of physical security measures that are used to protect gold, including 24-hour operation centers manned by guards and accessed only through hardware tokens, with staff who have undergone extensive background checks.
[Without major investments in security infrastructure] most likely we’re going to see more companies getting hacked, or bitcoin being stolen.
Kraken to handle bankruptcy claims
The bankruptcy trustee for Mt. Gox announces it will work with California-based Bitcoin exchange, Kraken, to return the money left in the estate to the company’s 127,000 creditors. Kraken CEO Powell says the company will help with the claims process, including evaluating the assets owed to creditors, and that it will assist in the investigation of Mt. Gox’s collapse. He says the trustee will have the final decision on payments in Bitcoin:
Allowing the creditors to go on without reinvestment, I think, would be very wrong. We’ve got to have the money that was locked up for the last 10 months returned as soon as possible.
On whether the exchange should be revived:
There are no assets, no brand. There is nothing to speak of to revive.
Bankruptcy claim system opens
A notice (link) posted on Mt. Gox’s website, says customers can make bankruptcy claims by signing with their account at claims.mtgox.com. There is also an offline option. Those filing must sign up to, or already have, a Kraken account since any returned coins will be deposited via the service. Returns will be calculated at a rate of $483 per BTC with an additional 6 percent per annum. Mt. Gox customers have until May 29 to file their claim. The company’s creditors plan to make a decision on returns by September 9, 2015.
Bankruptcy deadline extended
The bankruptcy trustee extends the period for filing bankruptcy claims from May 29, 2015 until 12 noon July 29, 2015. After July 29, the only things that a user will be able to do through the online method will be to view bankruptcy claims filed by the user and transfer the bankruptcy claims to another person.
Arrested
Karpeles is arrested at his home by Japanese police who say he accessed a computer system and falsified data on its outstanding balance. Police say Karpeles protested at his arrest and said he will not sign any documents until his lawyer arrives. The Tokyo Metropolitan Police say they believe Karpeles had manipulated transaction records on a computer system that Mt. Gox used to swap Bitcoins for dollars, and had “unjustly inflated the balance” of an account held under his name:
He created false information that $1 million had been transferred into the account, when in fact it had not been.
Karpeles has not been formally charged. Police can detain him for up to 23 days before charging him.
Arrest warrant for $2.6 million bitcoin theft
After three weeks with no formal charges Japanese police says they will issue a fresh arrest warrant accusing him of pocketing $2.6 million worth of Bitcoin deposits, which was mainly spent on buying software rights, but also includes $48,000 for a luxury bed. Police are also reportedly interested in questioning Karpeles about the disappearance of 850,000 coins worth 48 billion yen last year. They were valued at around $480 million at the time of the disappearance, and $387 million at current exchange rates.
Rolling Stone profile
Rolling Stone publishes a profile of Karpeles and Mt. Gox, titled The Rise and Fall of a Bitcoin Kingpin. On stealing Gameboys and mobile phones as a teenager by hacking shopping websites:
A lot of people respected me for that. I did feel more important, in a way. If I need something, I press a button and I get it.
On what he felt like when he realized $650 million in bitcoins were gone:
It really felt unreal. I don’t know how to describe that. When you get a hospital operation without any anesthetic, it hurts at first, but at some point the pain reaches a point where you don’t feel anything anymore.
Embezzlement charge
Japanese prosecutors charge Karpeles with embezzling 321 million yen ($2.66 million) by transferring clients’ funds deposited at Mt.Gox’s bank account to other accounts. Sources say the money was spent on buying computer software development rights and an expensive custom-built bed. Karpeles is suspected of falsifying data on the outstanding balance of the exchange. Karpeles has denied the charges, telling investigators the data falsification was done for the company and he had intended to pay back the money. He has been held without formal charge for six weeks, as allowed under Japanese law.