Former Mt. Gox CEO Proposes Bitcoin Hard Fork to Recover $5.2 Billion in Stolen Assets

Former Mt. Gox CEO Mark Karpelès recently proposed a Bitcoin hard fork plan, suggesting to recover approximately 79,956 BTC stolen in the 2011 hacking incident, which is worth about $5.2 billion at current prices.
The proposal targets a wallet address associated with the 2011 Mt. Gox system breach. This address received nearly 80,000 BTC after the hack and has remained untouched for over 15 years. Under existing Bitcoin rules, these funds can only be transferred if the corresponding private keys are held. According to the proposal, the new rules would allow the signature from the Mt. Gox recovery address to control the unspent outputs in that address, thereby integrating the funds into the existing judicial compensation process to pay Mt. Gox creditors.
Karpelès stated that this plan is only a starting point for discussion, with the rule change limited to a single address and to be activated at a specific block height in the future. However, the proposal also acknowledges that this would require a network-wide coordinated upgrade, and if some community members refuse support, it could lead to a blockchain split. It is important to note that these approximately 80,000 BTC are not currently part of the assets allocated to Mt. Gox creditors and are not controlled by the bankruptcy trustee.