Cryptocurrencies experienced a downturn on Tuesday as Kraken began distributing assets to creditors of the now-defunct Mt. Gox exchange, raising concerns about potential market sell-offs.
Bitcoin (BTC) fell to $65,500, marking a nearly 4% drop over the past 24 hours. Bitcoin Cash (BCH) saw an even steeper decline, plummeting over 7% during the same period.
The CoinDesk 20 Index, a broad-market crypto benchmark, dropped 3%, with major altcoins like Solana (SOL), Ripple‘s XRP (XRP), and Cardano‘s ADA (ADA) falling by 4% to 5%.
In contrast, Ether (ETH) showed relative stability, trading mostly flat below $3,500. This resilience was bolstered by strong trading volumes on the debut day of U.S.-listed spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
The market reaction follows the start of asset distributions from the Mt. Gox estate. After a decade-long wait, creditors are beginning to receive their cryptocurrencies from the exchange, which collapsed in 2014 following a major hack. The estate commenced asset transfers this month, and creditors will be able to reclaim their assets over the coming weeks.
The anticipated distribution of nearly $9 billion worth of Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash has raised significant concern among digital asset investors. They are speculating on the potential market impact if creditors decide to sell some of their assets to take advantage of the considerable price appreciation seen over the past decade.
Recent blockchain activity related to Mt. Gox has already impacted crypto prices. Earlier today, Bitcoin’s price dipped to around $66,000 after Mt. Gox wallets transferred $2.8 billion worth of assets, including $130 million in Bitcoin, to Bitstamp, signaling forthcoming distributions to creditors.
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