Mt. Gox, the biggest bitcoin exchange in the world, suddenly went dark on Tuesday without any notice, thus leaving investors questioning about its future.
In its website, the Mt. Gox said, "In light of recent news reports and the potential repercussions on MtGox's operations and the market, a decision was taken to close all transactions for the time being in order to protect the site and our users. We will be closely monitoring the situation and will react accordingly."
Bitcoin is a virtual currency that currently amounts to about $517. It has enticed several large business capital investors and is just beginning to get accepted as a method of payment. The total bitcoins in circulation are approximately worth $6.4 billion.
Hours after the sites sudden closure, Mt. Gox CEO Mark Karpeles, who resigned from the Foundation's board on Sunday, told Reuters in an e-mail, "We should have an official announcement ready soon-ish. We are currently at a turning point for the business. I can't tell much more for now as this also involves other parties." However, he failed to detail particulars about the matter and his whereabouts.
A document going around the Internet claiming to be Mt. Gox's crisis plan revealed that over 744,000 bitcoins were "missing due to malleability-related theft." It also revealed that the Tokyo-based bitcoin exchange had $174 million in liabilities when it only had $32.75 million in assets.
If true, that means roughly six percent of the 12.4 million bitcoins are lost.
A number of other digital currency exchanges and major early-stage investors in bitcoin, on the other hand, retorted with persuasive statements to reassure investors of security protocols they implement and bitcoin's viability, as well.
As of posting, a source familiar with the matter informed the Wall Street Journal that the bitcoin exchange has received a subpoena from the federal prosecutors in New York.
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