Ultimate Catastrophe

How MtGox Lost Half a Billion Dollars and Nearly Killed Bitcoin

MtGox was the biggest Bitcoin exchange in the world when it imploded in 2014, taking almost half a billion dollars in customer funds with it. The collapse of MtGox, triggered by a perfect storm of crippling hacks and spectacular mismanagement, shocked the Bitcoin world to its core and left the fledgling cryptocurrency on the ropes. Worse, it started a battle for compensation by creditors that took over a decade to resolve, by which time the loss was calculated at over $50 billion.

Ultimate Catastrophe - How MtGox Lost Half a Billion Dollars and Nearly Killed Bitcoin covers the rise and fall of MtGox and the titanic fights waged by those whose lives were turned upside-down by its capitulation: the sleuths, both amateur and professional, who hunted down the hackers; the desperate desire of MtGox CEO, Mark Karpelès, to clear his name; and the efforts of the tens of thousands of defrauded customers to claw back what was rightfully theirs.

With insight from those who built it, used it and investigated its demise, join Mark Hunter as he reveals for the first time the full story of the birth, life and untimely death of MtGox.

©2023, 2025 Mark Hunter (P)2025 Mark Hunter