The Bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox is finally allowing users to check their online wallet balances, nearly a month after its abrupt shut down.
Mt. Gox filed for bankruptcy after its collapse, arguing it had lost nearly 850,000 bitcoins (more than $500 million) in a years-long cyber heist. Mt. Gox users can now check how many bitcoin they have left in their accounts through the exchange's homepage.
See also: Japan Decides Bitcoin 'Isn't a Currency'
This doesn't necessarily mean they'll get any of those back though. Mt. Gox is undergoing a Japanese legal procedure known as a civil rehabilitation process — similar to a U.S. chapter 11 bakruptcy — to rebuild and eventually repay users at least some of the bitcoins they had in their online wallets.
Letting users log in and check their wallets is provided "only for the convenience of all users," and doesn't "constitute a filing of rehabilitation claims," Mt. Gox warned in a notice posted on the homepage.
Moreover, the account information displayed is based on Mt. Gox's last available data before the shutdown, according to a spokesperson consulted by Reuters.
This is Mt. Gox's second attempt to quell some critics in the wake of the shutdown, after opening a call center last week. But its former users were not too excited about this new development.
"I can see the 10k Mtgox stole from me... hooray!" wrote a Reddit user, commenting on the news.
Here's Mt. Gox's full statement.
"This balance confirmation service is provided on this site only for the convenience of all users.
Please be aware that confirming the balance on this site does not constitute a filing of rehabilitation claims under the civil rehabilitation procedure and note that the balance amounts shown on this site should also not be considered an acknowledgment by MtGox Co., Ltd. of the amount of any rehabilitation claims of users.
Rehabilitation claims under a civil rehabilitation procedure become confirmed from a filing which is followed by an investigation procedure. The method for filing claims will be published on this site as soon as we will be in situation to announce it."
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