MT.GOX

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MT.GOX, launched in 2010, was once the most popular crypto exchange, located in Tokyo, Japan. It handled over 70% of all BTC transactions at one point. Mt. Gox played a significant role in the early development and popularization of Bitcoin. However, the exchange faced several challenges and security issues. Founded by Mark Karpeles, who later was found guilty of tampering with financial records, the exchange suspended trading multiple times due to security breaches and technical problems.

The most significant event occurred in 2014 when Mt. Gox announced that approximately 850,000 bitcoins, valued at about $450 million at the time, were missing and likely stolen. This represented about 7% of all bitcoins in existence at the time and led to the exchange filing for bankruptcy. It was shut down in 2014. It is the largest and most famous cryptocurrency fraud case of all, mainly due to the incompetence of Karpeles and those running it. It even has a term used to describe when somebody has had their crypto stolen or hacked. “You’ve been GOX’D!”