Crypto Rebound Cools as Fears Over Mt. Gox Persist, Flat at $64K

Bitcoin experienced limited movement on Thursday as it stabilized following a significant rebound, with ongoing concerns about token distributions from the defunct crypto exchange Mt. Gox continuing to weigh on the market.

After bouncing back from nearly four-month lows in recent sessions, traders were hopeful about the potential for a more favorable regulatory environment amid speculation surrounding a possible Donald Trump presidency.

At 08:35 ET, Bitcoin was trading at $64,769.3, showing a marginal increase of 0.3% over the previous 24 hours.

### Ongoing Concerns About Mt. Gox

The specter of token distributions from Mt. Gox is a source of anxiety in the market, especially after wallets linked to the exchange mobilized $2.8 billion worth of tokens earlier this week. The exchange had indicated it would start returning tokens stolen in a 2014 hack to creditors, beginning in July, but the total amount of Bitcoin involved in the distribution remains uncertain.

Such concerns have sparked fears that an influx of Bitcoin into the market could lead to increased selling pressure, driving prices downward as recipients of the tokens may be more likely to sell after a significant price increase over the past decade. This situation had previously contributed to sharp declines in Bitcoin’s value, dropping it to near four-month lows and nearing levels that could induce miner capitulation.

However, optimism surged this week as speculation around a second Trump presidency gained traction, especially given his recent endorsements of cryptocurrency during his campaign efforts. Trump is also scheduled to speak at the upcoming Bitcoin Conference in Nashville.

Additionally, the cryptocurrency market benefited from a weaker dollar amid increasing expectations that the Federal Reserve might begin cutting interest rates in September.

### Market Performance of Altcoins

In the wider cryptocurrency sector, major altcoins experienced a stable trading range as the fervor from previous rallies began to subside. The second-largest cryptocurrency remained unchanged at $3,461.78, buoyed by speculation regarding the approval of spot exchange-traded funds for U.S. markets.

Meanwhile, a notable altcoin saw a decline of 5.3% after rumors of a settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission sparked gains the previous day. Other altcoins remained relatively flat, while meme tokens faced losses, with SHIB dropping 10% and DOGE losing 2%.

### Security Breach at WazirX

In related news, the crypto exchange WazirX suffered a security breach that resulted in the unauthorized transfer of over $230 million in digital assets. The breach targeted the exchange’s multisig wallet, likely due to a compromised private key, leading to the draining of funds.

The hacker managed to upgrade the wallet’s protective measures to a malicious contract, as reported by a security firm. Stolen assets included significant amounts of various cryptocurrencies, amounting to over $100 million.

WazirX has confirmed the incident and is currently investigating the outflows while halting all withdrawals. In their statement, they mentioned, “We’re aware that one of our multisig wallets has experienced a security breach. Our team is actively investigating the incident. To ensure the safety of your assets, INR and crypto withdrawals will be temporarily paused.” The security firm noted, “It looks like there is a private key leakage in WazirX exchange. The leaked private keys were used to upgrade a secure multi-sig wallet to a malicious contract, allowing for the draining of assets.”